Sleeping with Ghosts
by xxHaleinaxx
Summary: Human!ToothlessxHiccup HTTYD/Dark-Hunters crossover Toothless is a Katagarian Were-Hunter, a creature that is able to turn human, who was fated to be mates with Hiccup. However, betrayal separated the two forever. Or, has it? Full Summary inside
1. Prologue

******Full Summary**: Toothless is a Katagarian Were-Hunter, a creature that has the magical ability to turn human, who was fated to be mates with Hiccup. However, when the two are betrayed and killed, Toothless makes a deal with the Greek goddess Artemis for one final act of revenge on the woman who killed them both. He then must live an eternity killing vampire like creatures called daimons, and be separated from his mate forever. But when the dragon helps a young college student from being mugged he realizes that his beloved has been reincarnated. Love and desire begins to stir between them once again, but is it threatened when a past enemies catch up to them?

**AN: ** Alright, for anyone wondering where my epic fanfiction went, well...my computer completely died on me half way during finals, which had the beginning of my story. I sort of gave up on it, although I will start writing it again soon since I'll have more time this summer. Meanwhile, I wrote this story which I'm really passionate about since I am such a huge fan of both "How to Train Your Dragon" and the Dark-Hunter series by Sherrilyn Kenyon. **IMPORTANT! **The reason why this story isn't in the crossover section is because I only took certain ideas from the series, but no characters or important series plot points are going to be in this story, meaning that you don't have to be a fan of the series to understand what is going on. (Also, I'm afraid of rabid DH fangirls who probably aren't all that in to slash)

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**Prologue**

**Berk 910 A.D**

The night air hung heavy with the stench of rotting flesh and blood. It had been less than a night since a massacre took place; the blood on the ground was still fresh and _dirty_. He doubted that the ground on which Berk stood would ever be clean again. It was fine with him; the memories would haunt him for the eternity he must live.

_No, not live. I'm not alive anymore. _

He sacrificed his soul, the peace of death, an afterlife with his mate for one act of revenge. He would not waste it.

The Katagarian dragon used his renewed body to fly into his beloved's former village undetected. He contemplating just setting the entire village ablaze for their trespasses against his beautiful mate, but he could not blame the residence for the superstition that had caused them to beat his lover almost to death. No, he was there to kill his true murderer.

The beast landed behind his former home, the home he and his mate shared with the she-devil that took both their lives. He used his Katagarian powers to transform from a sleek, black, killer of a dragon to a dark-haired, olive-skinned, killer of a man. He made his way through the familiar building silently until he reached the room that the blonde was sleeping in. His new black eyes gazed upon her for a few moments before he let out a terrible roar that allowed all the pain and hatred he felt be known to the world.

His murderer sat straight up after being shocked out of her slumber. The fear in the woman's blue eyes after she recognized the man at the foot of her bed would have been satisfying if the dragon was able to feel anything besides fire hot rage. She inched away from him until her back was against the intricately designed headboard in an effort to put some distance between herself and the demon in her room.

"How can this be? I killed you," she gasped, " You died along with Hic-"

"Don't you dare let his name fall from your lips," the Katagarian hissed, "You don't deserve to say his name." With every word he said he inched closer to his lover's widow until he was finally at the side of the bed. The quivering female was at a lethal distance from him.

"Y-You are a demon." The blonde stuttered as she attempted to shield herself with a blanket.

A blanket that had still faintly held the sent of his beloved.

The beast smirked "No, not a demon, but close."

Those were the last words the she-devil would hear before she was ripped to pieces.

Those were the last words he uttered before the dragon was enslaved to a Greek goddess, before he was trained to kill the predators of the human population he despised, before he would live for an eternity without the only being he would ever love.

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**AN: ** Please be nice and review!


	2. Chapter 1

**AN**: Thanks for everyone who reviewed! For people with questions or who are confused by something - don't worry! Everything will be explained throughout the story, so you're going to have to keep reading.

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**Chapter 1 **

**Monterey, California A.D 2010 **

Deep black eyes glared daggers out the window at the thick fog that slowly settled itself outside the coffee shop. The owner of the black orbs gave a subtle snort of annoyance. His mate never cared for fog, and it also meant that he would have to work harder that night. Daimons, vampire-like creatures that sustained themselves by stealing the souls of the people they fed upon, always tried and failed at using it as a cloak to hide themselves and their evil deeds, but more of them would continue to come out in the fog regardless of the past failed attempts.

The Dark-Hunter turned his head from the window to face his quickly cooling, half-finished caffeine fix. He contemplated leaving to hunt early that night, having no interest in finishing his drink, but he knew it would be fruitless. They never come out _this _early in the evening.

Besides, he was already keeping on eye on the bloodsuckers favorite hunting ground : the local university. Stupid, young, unsuspecting drunk kids were no match for Daimons, but then again, Daimons were no match for Dreki Anvindr, formally known as Toothless. He kept himself stationed at the coffee shop within the campus' library, and waited for any sign of his prey's activity.

Dreki, once again, set his eyes on the outside fog. _You see that, my love? It's really foggy where I am. You would hate it, but don't worry, I would keep you warm…if you were here. _Despite the bitter heartache that came from knowing that his mate could no longer respond to his thoughts, which was one of the abilities granted to Hiccup when they bonded, he continued to. He believed that somehow his mate could hear him. It also sustained his sanity by keeping the soul crushing loneliness at bay.

"Hey, you're missing the party at Sanderling!" Dreki turned his attention to the front register where a tall, well-endowed, blonde female was speaking to her friend, who was working behind the counter. He didn't pay much attention to the conversation that took place afterwards. The word party was exactly the sign he needed, since Daimons hardly passed up a chance to catch their favorite meal.

With a sigh the Katagari stood from his seat, and walked out to the lobby of the two story library. He took note of the girls at the help desk staring at him with dreamy expressions on their faces. Yes, he had to agree that he was just as sexy as a human as he was beautiful as a dragon. His tall stature and well-defined body only enhanced his strong, handsome features. Unfortunately for his admirers the only person he would ever share his body with had long since been dead.

Dreki walked through the large glass doors of the library, and into the cold northern California air. Having lived all his life and unlife in freezing weather he was very much used to it, but it still aggravated him to no end when he remembered how Hiccup used to hate the cold with a passion. Such annoyance worsened his already sour mood. He itched for a good fight to release the pent up negative energy he was holding.

Luckily for him, it wasn't long after he began to walk down toward the dorms that Dreki's sensitive ears picked up the sounds of a struggle going on behind the library. He didn't sense a Daimon among the fray, but he still used it as an excuse to get into a scuffle to warm himself up for the night. His adrenaline fueled excitement and strong legs helped him quickly run to the other end of the building. When he arrived he saw a young college student being pinned against the wall by a man twice the boy's size, who had both his accomplices on either side of him.

The display reminded him of why he hated human kind with such an intensity. They hurt, tortured and killed their own kind for senseless reasons, more often than not. Animals were much more civilized. They only killed to keep themselves alive and nothing more.

The dragon managed, without much effort, to gracefully sneak behind the attackers. He tapped the middle one lightly on the shoulder causing the man to turn in surprise, only to be met by the Katagari's fist. Once the other two men noticed that their friend was unconscious on the cement ground they rushed at him from opposite sides. The dragon merely stepped back, grabbed the back of their necks and led their heads together making a loud, ugly cracking sound that echoed off the walls of the surrounding buildings.

The three unconscious men were piled on top of each other in an unceremonious heap. They weren't going to recover anytime soon.

"Damn, and I was hoping for a _good _fight." The Katagarian dragon muttered to himself.

Dreki was about to walk away without paying any heed to the college student he had saved, but he heard the boy curse in a voice that sounded oddly like his dead mate's. Slightly intrigued, he took a step toward the youth who was hurriedly trying to gather various books and papers that had fallen out of his backpack with the same mannerisms Hiccup had when he picked up various objects in a hurry. The dragon noticed that, on top of those coincidences, the boy's hair had the same red tinting that his beloved's had when it shined in the moonlight.

_That's it. I finally have gone crazy from the loneliness. _

Dreki swallowed nervously before he asked, "Hey, uh, do you need help with anything?"

The dragon had to stifle a gasp of surprise when the boy looked up to respond to his question. The youth's face was the exact duplicate of his beloved's. He had the same intelligent green eyes, cutely rounded nose, freckled cheeks and wonderfully kissable lips that his deceased mate possessed. It was as if he had never died, and had traveled through time to kneel before him at that very moment.

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**AN: **Please Review =D


	3. Chapter 2

**AN: **Thanks to anyone who is reading, and an extra thank you for those who reviewed. Hopefully this chapter is long enough to satisfy.

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**Chapter 2**

Hiccup Haroldson Haddock did not have a good day.

It had started bad enough. He was woken up by his high school sweetheart calling to break up with him. She had accused him of not being attracted to her. So what if he wasn't ready to have sex with her? It didn't mean he was gay. She then informed him that she found someone who _was _attracted to her.

More angry than sad, Hiccup decided to calm himself with a relaxing shower. Just as he was gathering his clothes and bathing materials, his roommate snuck into the bathroom. The college student would have waited for the bathroom to be free if he hadn't realized that he was already a few minutes late to his class.

After he dressed himself, he ran to his class, which luckily for him, was only a few minutes away from his dorm building. He arrived to an empty, dark and eerily silent classroom. It was then that he remembered how his professor had canceled that day's class the night before.

Hiccup, upset and annoyed, trudged back to his dorm building only to find that because he was in such a hurry he forgot his school id and keys. He called his roommate who was much to busy playing video games with his friends to let him inside the building. He then called the resident advisor who took his sweet time getting around to letting him inside.

By the time he was let into his room, it had been time to head to his next class. He was sure to grab his keys that time, but he didn't realize until he was half way to his destination that he forgot to print out his homework assignment. He headed back to his dorm, printed his homework and ran to his class.

After his last class, Hiccup decided it was time for his shower. He stayed under the warm spray of the shower, letting the water run soothingly over his pale skin. But, it was only a few minutes before he felt the water cool. Despite turning it to the warmest setting, the shower had continued to cool. He hurriedly washed his hair and skin before the water became unbearably cold. He _hated _the cold.

He exited the bathroom even more annoyed than when he went in. He sat at his computer to go into his email inbox where he found a message to all dorm residence reading that the hot water was being shut off for some repairs being done to the water heater. Hiccup could feel a twitch begin in his right eye.

The college student had begun working on his homework to find something to occupy himself. He was fortunate enough to not have any mishaps with his computer during the process. Unfortunately, once he tried to print out the assignments he had finished his printer announced that it was out of ink. He contemplated whether or not it would be worth just waiting until the next day to print his assignments out on the library's printers, but that would only give him a few minutes to get to his class.

He thanked whatever merciful being that allowed him to find out his ink was out three hours before the library closed at midnight. He emailed himself the assignments, since taking his easily lost USB drive on a bad day would be asking for _it, _and headed to the library.

Hiccup made the fateful decision to listen to his music while walking the short way to the library. If it were not for the music he might have heard the three thugs that followed him. Just as he neared the back of the library, the teenager was dragged behind the building. They pulled out his ear buds, thrown his things, pushed him against the wall and slurred insults at him.

Hiccup winced as he prepared himself to get his face utterly pulverized. It took a few moments for him to realize that no one had touched him. He opened his eyes and watched as his gorgeous savior gave the three thugs the same treatment they were going to give him.

He had never seen a more attractive man in his life. The stranger looked as if he was made for sex, having such a tall stature and strong build. His face was surrounded by long, wavy, midnight-black hair. His features were beautifully defined by high cheek bones, a long, straight nose and a sturdy jaw. He could see, from the few exposed parts of the man, flawless, sun-kissed skin. Hiccup had such a strong curiosity to see what the rest of his body looked like underneath all the winter clothes he was wearing.

The student shook off his obscene thoughts as he got on one knee to gather some of the things that had fallen out of his bag. He wasn't gay. Well, he couldn't exactly say that. He was never attracted to anyone before. The only reason why he had a girlfriend at all was because, as a young adult, you were sort of expected to have one already. _Great. The first person I'm attracted to is a complete and total stranger. _

Hiccup looked at the things that he had gathered: graded assignments, random doodles and some handouts. No, of course the important things were the objects that were thrown the farthest and probably were the most damaged. His mood only worsened by having his glasses slide off his face into the dark depths of his backpack, so he couldn't even see where his most precious things had gone. Nor could he clearly see the sexy stranger that rescued him.

He growled at himself as he searched the depths of his backpack for his thin-framed glasses. He half registered that his rescuer was actually asking him a question. He looked up to respond, and was immediately captivated by him. _Damn, he looks even better up close. _

What really intrigued him, however, was the feeling that he had seen him somewhere before. He tried to remember where he recognized the man from, but he came up blank. Besides, he would remember someone who had such strange colored eyes like his. They were so dark that they almost looked black.

He realized after a moment of silence that the man was staring at him strangely. It felt as if he was examining him, and it made Hiccup even more uncomfortable then he already was. "What?" he snapped without really meaning to.

The snappish statement was somewhat nostalgic for Dreki. His little Viking had a lot of patience, but that didn't mean he didn't have a bit of a temper when he was pushed. He would say almost being mugged by three men bigger than he would be a bit of a push. Even though the statement was harsh, it made his heart flutter with a happiness he had not felt since he was alive.

"I was just asking if you needed some help?" Dreki inquired gently.

Hiccup felt a stab of guilt hit him straight in the heart. This man had just saved his ass from being thrown into a world of hurt, and here he was snapping at him. It wasn't his fault his day was so bad. He sighed, "Sorry, man, I didn't mean to snap at you. I just had the worst day of my life and it seems to want to get progressively worse."

"Is there anything I could do to make it better?" The Katagari asked with a soft smile.

Hiccup felt his heart flutter in his chest. This man was too good to be true. He was gorgeous and kind-hearted, even after he had yelled at him. The college sighed before he responded, "No, I think I'm alright. I just have to find my glasses, and then find the rest of my stuff, but it's cool."

"Glasses?" Dreki asked surprised, although he didn't mean to actually say anything out loud. Hiccup always had such perfect vision, it was how he was able to draw with such detail so well. Then again, in this day and age, his reincarnated lover must have ruined his vision by being in front of a illuminated screen for most of his life.

"Yup!" the teen chuckled bitterly, "If I didn't already look like a geek, God gave me bad eyes on top of everything. I think I was meant to be picked on my entire life."

Dreki quirked an eyebrow, "So you were born with bad eyes?

Hiccup shook his head as he began to fish for his glasses. "No, my eyes didn't start getting bad until high school, of all times." The student realized that he was giving out a lot of information about himself that he didn't even think the kid he lived with knew. He also realized that he really didn't care. He felt at ease with his savior, almost as if he wasn't a stranger at all, but a friend he had known for years.

Dreki shook his head slightly. The dragon's suspicions were confirmed. The teen had ruined his eyes somehow, his poor boy, but at least in the 21st century he was able to correct his vision. "Well, I'll tell you what. Why don't you look for your glasses while I look around for your stuff, okay?"

The Katagari didn't give the student a chance to protest. He already started to use his amazing night vision to locate the boy's various books. Some of the items had sparked his interest. One book he found was on Norse mythology, while another was about the history of dragon myths.

He found the boy's drawing notebook, which was flipped to a random drawing of what looked like a Deadly Nadder about to take flight. _By the gods, this is my Hiccup. I found my beloved. _"Nice drawings." Dreki called out to the teen while approaching him, "You're a real artist."

Hiccup swiftly looked up in horror. Drawing was a secret hobby he shared with no one. His artwork was his number one insecurity. "Hey wait! Please don't look at that."

Dreki immediately turned his eyes from the sketch to Hiccup with something akin to a mixture of surprise and guilt. "I'm sorry," he immediately apologized, "I just found it open."

Hiccup was thoroughly impressed. He wasn't yet a friend, but he respected his boundaries without prying further. Once someone found out about one of his obsessions, such as dragons, there would be a never ending list of questions. When they were answered he was usually poked fun at until he regretted letting someone in on his interests.

"If you really want to look at them, you can." Hiccup said shyly while a small blush formed across the student's freckled cheeks. "Just as long as you don't call me a geek or a nerd, or something like that."

The given opportunity to see the boy's artwork caused a bright smile to appear on Dreki's face. He took quick strides to approach his beautiful mate's reincarnation. _My mate…_He used all his self-control to simply not pounce on the boy and embrace him. The dragon would have a hard time explaining such an odd action, an explanation he couldn't quite give as a stranger. No, he wouldn't let the teen on his past life until they were at least friends in this life.

The Katagari sat beside the kneeling student after he handed the two other books to him. Hiccup took a moment before he sat down where he knelt, and took the books from the other's hands. The teen tensely watched as the man flipped to the first page; he waited for the rude remarks to follow.

Dreki's smile turned into an outright grin once he saw that the first picture was that of an adorable Night Fury, an ear tilted to the side. "I never would have thought a Night Fury could look so cute." the dragon said while flipping to the second page.

"You know what a Night Fury is?" Hiccup asked surprised. He didn't know many people who were aware that, in fantasy, there were many species of dragons. He knew even less people that actually knew the names of these species. In fact, the only other person he met that knew of these species was sitting beside him.

"And -" The Katagari began as he examined the wonderfully drawn twin-headed dragon on the page, "I know what a Hideous Zippleback is."

Hiccup beamed, "Man! That's so cool! I never met another person who knew this much about dragons."

Dreki turned to the student with an amused expression. He loved how enthusiastic the teen was about his kind. The dragon fantasized about how happy the boy would be when he discovered that dragons weren't just stories of the past. Maybe he could even take him flying one day. "Well, I'm really into them. I think dragons are cool."

"I'm glad I found someone who also likes dragons," Hiccup said happily, and without much thought he added, "Although you don't really look to be the type."

The Katagari smirked. "What type do I look like?"

Hiccup's entire face reddened with embarrassment. He cursed his poor social skills. Why couldn't he just talk to someone without offending them?

With as much thought as he put into his last statement, he quickly babbled, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean anything by it. It's just there isn't a lot of people as attractive as you who are into-" He stopped abruptly realizing what he had just admitted to. He hung his head in his hands in shame.

Dreki couldn't help but to chuckle. The college student was just as adorable as Hiccup used to be. He put a hand on the timid kid's shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly. "You shouldn't be so down on yourself." The dragon considered complimenting the teen, but the last thing he wanted was for the student to become uncomfortable, so he asked "Can I be honest with you?"

Hiccup took his face out of his hands, and looked into the beautifully strange eyes of the man beside him. The softness behind them drew him in. No longer did he feel nervous or embarrassed, he felt…at home. He was so at ease he hardly registered that he nodded.

Dreki tried to look for the words: handsome, beautiful, absolutely sexy. But, none of them seemed right. He was never able to find the words that described his lover. No words could ever define his beloved's beauty, so he would never insult his mate by calling him anything that was below him. Instead, he would use actions to tell his mate how beautiful he thought he was.

Such as leaning in and capturing the boy's lips with his own.

Hiccup gasped against the man's incredibly soft lips; he certainly did not expect for the stranger to kiss him. But even though his mind was still in shock, his body more than welcomed him to his mouth. He didn't know why, but he felt a fierce desire to increase the intimate contact with his gorgeous rescuer. It was as if his very soul called out for the other.

Before his savior had a chance to pull away, Hiccup wrapped his arms around the man's neck to keep him still. The college student obeyed his body's command to lean into his rescuer. He parted his lips allowing the kiss to deepen.

Dreki's body burned for the teen's. The familiar taste of his mate on his tongue awakened a passion within himself that he hadn't felt in centuries. He felt himself grow uncomfortably hard due to how attractive the student was, and the strong, feral, Katagarian instinct to mate, but he kept himself leashed. At least, as leashed as a lonely, sex-deprived dragon could be.

Which was why, when he began to smell the alluring scent of his soul mate's arousal, he reluctantly pulled away from the teen. He wouldn't be able to stop if he lost himself to the essence of the teen. Although he was forced to leave the student's embrace, he was glad that at least the student's body was pleased with the sudden gift of affection.

The dragon couldn't help but grin with relief and amusement when the teen softly smiled and said, "Do you have a habit of making out with strangers?"

"Do _you_?" Dreki retorted.

They both chuckled before Hiccup responded with, "Good point, so how's about we stop being strangers." The teen extended his hand towards the man he had just kissed. "Hi, my name is Hiccup."

Dreki took the boy's hand in his own, and shook it gently. The dragon found it quite interesting that the boy's name was the English translation of his Norse name from long ago. Hiccup mistook the man's intrigue for disbelief. "Yes, it really and legally is Hiccup."

Dreki chuckled, "Oh, I believe you. A cute kid like yourself has to have a cute name." The blush on Hiccup's face was the hoped for indication that he saved himself from annoying the teen further. "My name is Dreki."

"Dreki?" Hiccup inquired. The dragon lover knew enough about his obsession that he recognized that his new crush's name meant "dragon" in Norse. The romantic part of himself considered his name as some sort of sign from above that divinely meant "_take him."_

"Yes," the Katagari insisted with a smirk, "it really and legally is Dreki."

Hiccup's body reacted very strongly toward the overwhelmingly sexy smirk. His heart pounded so hard that he felt as if it was beating against his ribcage. It was harder to breathe with every breath he took. His skin tingled; it begged to be touched by his gorgeous savior. His jeans were embarrassingly becoming much too tight on him. He wanted Dreki like he had never wanting anything in his life.

The college student didn't want to lose this feeling. He finally found someone he was genuinely attracted to, and that he could see himself falling love with. He was not an outgoing person, and he never asked anyone on a date before, but he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he didn't at least try creating a connection with Dreki.

Hiccup anxiously asked, "So, um - I was wondering, since we really still don't know each other that well, if you would like to - uh - you know, hang out or something?"

Dreki's eyes softened with affection for his soul mate. _This kid is just too cute for his own good. _"Are you trying to ask me out on a date?"

Hiccup bit his lip before his gaze shifted down to his lap. "Well, I guess I am."

The teen felt Dreki's soft lips touch his cheek briefly before he heard, "You're just too cute."

Hiccup looked toward his rescuer with a gaze filled with disappointment. "Is that a no, then?" he sighed.

Dreki was blow away with how low the student's confidence level was. Granted, he didn't really get to know Hiccup until after he became "The Dragon Master", and his confidence only increased when he became "The Dragon Trainer" and "Great Hero", but this was extreme. Why couldn't he see himself the same way the dragon saw him - a beautiful, intelligent, wonderful being? No matter, he would teach him to love himself, again.

"You really need to have more confidence in yourself, Hiccup." Dreki said affectionately. He reached a hand out to softly touch his teen's cheek, admiring how silky it felt beneath his fingertips. "Why wouldn't I want to go out on a date with you?"

Hiccup's forest green gaze was downcast once more. Quietly he said, "I don't know. Maybe because you're this gorgeous badass while I'm just a scrawny computer nerd, and not one of those hot nerds, either."

The dragon's fingertips trailed from Hiccup's cheek to underneath his chin. He lifted his face so that their eyes could meet. In all sincerity he spoke, "I will prove to you that you are not 'just' anything, and I'd like to start by taking you to a dinner and movie Friday night."

Pure happiness replaced the disappointment in the Hiccup's eyes . "Really?" he asked, not believing that someone such as he would really be interested in him.

Dreki nodded. "Really."

The two men exchanged information, and made final plans to meet on Friday around eight pm at the local mall before they went their separate ways. They both waited anxiously to see each other in two days.

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Volundr watched the entire incident with great satisfaction. So, the little bastard had reincarnated himself.

It was fate that he had overheard a rumor that Toothless had become a dark-hunter. For decades he followed any leads to his location, but he hadn't discovered that he was stationed in a small college city in the west coast until a week ago. When he finally found the asshole that killed his mate he didn't expect that his bitch would also be alive. But, it would seem that he had no memories of his former life.

Perfect. He not only had the privilege of killing the dark-hunter and sending him to a hell he could not imagine, but he would kill his ex-mate right in front of him. He would feel the torment of watching his lover die like he had to.

The night would forever be burned in his mind; the fire, the corpses, the blood. He saw his entire family be slaughtered by the humans they trusted. All because of that _thing _Dreki mated. There was a time when he loved Hiccup like a brother, or even like a son, but no more. He had nothing but bitter hate for the boy who sentenced his entire family, and many other families, to death.

Volundr wasn't so lucky. Death was a mercy compared to being so utterly alone like he was. Death was a mercy that neither Hiccup or Toothless deserved after the mistake they made.

He was there when Astrid, his rider, had discovered her future husband making love with Toothless at their "secret" hide-out. How could they betray the Were-Hunter code after they took in a _human _as their own_? _They were never to reveal themselves. Ever. Yet, they were stupid enough to fuck each other in broad daylight.

The Nadder flew off without Astird in the hopes that he could evacuate his family. When he arrived his mate convinced him that everything would be alright. "Hiccup would never betray us," she had said, "he'll lie. He'll come up with something."

But, he hadn't. Astrid ran to the village and hysterically babbled to the superstitious villagers about shape-shifting demons. She claimed that Hiccup was seduced by them, and that the dragons needed to be killed in order to escape some curse. That was the lie he came up with. That was how he saved his own ass. That was how everyone was almost killed.

Even some of the humans who were loyal to Hiccup had been killed while trying to defend him by the convinced, older, more superstitious Vikings.

He learned of everyone's fate once he and the other dragons evacuated the village, including how Hiccup had died. Apparently the human was stupid enough not to realize that because he joined life forces with his mate that he would die if Toothless did. But while he was rejoicing their deaths, the other dragons were mourning.

Volundr was disgusted. He roared how Hiccup and Toothless should be cursed and not mourned after. They should be angered by the fact that they weren't able to kill the boy and his dragon themselves. The others disagreed, and promptly banished him from their group.

For centuries he was alone. He wandered without a cause, until he discovered that Toothless was alive. He vowed that he would find him and kill him. He had a cause, he had a purpose. It was time to fulfill it.

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**AN: **Argh, you have no idea how UNHAPPY I am with this chapter. I tried to edit it the best I can, but I could not get it to sound the way I wanted it to. So, if anyone out there knows how I can improve this chapter PLEASE tell me.


	4. Chapter 3

AN: I promised to have this out by yesterday night, or at the very latest this morning, but no...I'm uploading this in the afternoon. Argh, so sorry. Anyway, sorry if it seems really rushed at the end. I just really wanted to get this out as fast as possible so I didn't have an excuse to not do my homework (Yes, I'm taking summer courses in college right now, why? Because I hate myself) Because of my classes, updates will probably be every two weeks instead of every week. =) So it will be updated on a regular basis.

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Aside from finding his long lost love, it had been a fairly quiet night. Dreki had gone to the party, but Daimons were scarce, and the ones who were there hoping to catch a meal had ran the moment they sensed his presence to what ever hole they had crawled out of. He didn't feel like chasing them this time.

He was in a good mood, and it made him charitable.

The dragon drove his Porsche Carrera GT to his home, while admiring the soft glow of early morning. In these moments he was grateful that he chose not to use his Katagarian magic to simply teleport to his home. The view brought him memories of when his little Viking had woken up extra early during the summer to admire and sketch the hidden beauty of Berk. He would follow to admire and memorize the beauty that was his mate. Once the sun came up they would often make love before sneaking back into his village.

The memories used to bring him nearly unbearable heartache, but from then on they would serve to make him look forward to what he could have with his reborn mate.

He drove up the long, curvy driveway to his home, which was hidden in the woods of Carmel Valley, but conveniently near enough to the ocean so that he was able hear the crashing waves. He picked the location because of how much it had reminded him of his former home in Berk, and even though he could never feel at home without his mate, it still gave him a small bit of comfort.

The Katagari had to admit, however, that the house he had when he was living was much more modest than the seaside mansion he owned as an undead creature. His wealth was one of the few privileges he had as a Dark-Hunter, a privilege he would soon share with his Hiccup. It gave him a strange excitement to think of all the things he would be able to give his mate, all the things he deserved.

The dragon parked his car right outside the alabaster steps that led to the front door of his house. Once he did make his way up the steps he was greeted by his Squire, Andrea, who had the door open for him.

Squires were akin to personal assistants. They were in charge of many different tasks assigned to them, plus whatever favors the Dark-Hunter may need to be taken care of. Many squires joke that they were very well paid slaves to their masters.

"Wow," Andrea commented while they both entered the dragon's dimly lit home, "You actually look happy. What happened?"

Dreki smiled at his squire. Like his Hiccup, the 20 year old had sarcastic tendencies that made her fun to be around. The squires before her were much too formal and traditional. It was nice to have a squire he could have an actual conversation with.

However, the one trait that his more traditional squires had that he wished Andrea possessed was their respect for his boundaries. Dreki knew if he told Andrea that he had a date he would be interrogated the rest of the night.

"Nothing happened," Dreki lied as he quickly made his way to the staircase in front of him, "It was a pretty quiet night." The dragon practically ran up the stairs in the hopes that she understood it as a hint that he was officially withdrawing from the conversation.

Despite his wishes, Andrea pursued him. "Animals are terrible liars."

Dreki stopped at the top of the stairs to turn and retort, "And humans apparently make terrible lie detectors." He continued to make quick strides towards the hallway and down to his room in an effort to shake his assistant off his trail. Unfortunately, it wasn't going to be that easy, especially since she was the only human on Earth who was brave enough to stalk after him.

"Come one Dreki!" she whined further annoying her boss "You never tell me anything!"

The girl almost ran into Dreki's back once he stopped at the threshold of his room. The dragon slowly turned to his assistant. His expression conveyed his annoyance. "Things with me are on a need-to-know basis, and you don't need to know anything of what happened tonight, okay?" Dreki made a shooing gesture with his hands. "Now go and get some sleep."

Before she had time to protest, the Dark-Hunter used his magic to flash himself out of his clothes and to take his Night Fury form. To make his final point that the conversation was over, he slammed the door closed with his tail. He could heard her long, exasperated sigh through the door, and the sound of her steps as she walked away.

_Thank the gods. _The Katagari turned away from the door, and walked over to the fireplace where the only two pieces of furniture in the room lay near, his bed and body pillow.

His bed wasn't really a bed, but rather an oversized dog bed that was custom made to be big enough for him to lie in. The dragon had never been too fond of mattresses as they were much too high off the ground for his comfort. He liked not having the possibility of breaking one of his wings if he were to roll over in his sleep.

Also, in the past there wasn't enough room for the dragon on Hiccup's small bed. The two would cuddle and sleep together on the floor. It was hard for him to sleep any other way.

That was where he found the necessity for a body pillow. It was a poor substitute for his actual lover, but at least he would be able to get comfortable enough to sleep. Before he discovered the use of having something to hold onto, it was almost impossible for him to get a goodnight's rest. Rather, he would spend the nights softly crying out for his mate while suffering the cold emptiness that was being without his beloved. At least with the pillow he had some semblance of warmth, and the illusion of company.

Dreki looked forward to when he would have his Love in his arms in reality rather than in fantasy. He curled around the body pillow after finding a comfortable position on his bed. He further nuzzled the pillow in his arms, pretending that it was his reborn mate. For the first time in ages he fell asleep with a smile.

* * *

Hiccup felt at peace. The day was sunny and warm. His eyes took in a view that was of a beautiful lake surrounded by forest. He is the comfort of someone's embrace, and although he couldn't see who it was, he knew he loved this person with his entire being.

The boy was being spoken to in a language he didn't recognize, but yet he understood that what the man who was holding him was saying was, "I love you."

He heard himself say in the strangely familiar language, "I love you, too."

Hiccup tried to turn so that he could see who was behind him, but he didn't have control over his body. He moved and not moved involuntarily.

The student felt the powerful arms around him tighten slightly. His eyes closed as a rather feminine giggle escaped his throat without his consent. He could hear the other man chuckle as well before he felt a warm, wet tongue lick him across his cheek.

"Toothless!" Hiccup cried out in surprise. He tried to open his eyes, but whoever was controlling his body kept his eyes screwed shut. Instead, a happy laugh escaped his throat.

"What?" the stranger asked with false confusion, "I was just trying to give you a kiss."

"That's not how humans kiss," Hiccup explained. Finally, he felt his upper body turn so that he was able to look at his companion.

He recognized him! _It's Dreki. _But, instead of Dreki having black eyes he had the most exotic green orbs he had ever seen. He also wore rather strange clothes. He looked like he came out of a renaissance fair with a black tunic, matching cloth pants and a dark fur vest over his shoulders. _Man, what did I eat? _

The teen's hands cupped his date's face. For a moment he admired how silky his skin felt beneath his finger tips. A wicked smile formed on his lips as he leaned his body forward. He whispered tenderly, "This is how humans kiss," before he pressed his lips gently onto Dreki's.

Suddenly, he heard a frighteningly loud ringing noise.

* * *

Hiccup shot out of bed with a gasp. He was disoriented, trapped in a mental fog left behind by his dream. It wasn't until he looked over to the dresser next to him and saw his ringing alarm clock that he was aware of his surroundings. He was not cuddling with his date near a lake, but rather surrounded by the bed sheets in his dorm room. The student gave a sound that was half way between a sigh and a whimper, and hit the "end" button.

The student made no move to get out of bed, or to lie back down to go back to sleep. Instead, he leaned against the wall behind his bed, contemplating what the dream could possibly mean. _It means I should stop running into extremely attractive men while trying to finish my history homework. _A small smile crept up onto his face remembering what a wonderful night he had.

In a much better mood than he was when he first woke up, he got out of bed and got ready for school.

* * *

"Evening, Dreki." Andrea greeted once she entered her boss' kitchen.

The Dark-Hunter looked up from the newspaper he was hiding behind, and gave a slight snort of acknowledgment. It was an evening ritual of theirs. He would read the local paper for any interesting news that could pertain to Daimon activity while Andrea would stumble about looking for something to eat.

Meanwhile, his squire opened the dragon's rather large refrigerator looking for food. Not satisfied by what was in the fridge, she looked in the freezer. Piles of raw fish meat were pushed away in order to acquire one of her favorite meals, TV dinners.

"You're not going to eat that crap again are you?" Dreki asked while still hiding behind his paper.

Andrea huffed, "At least I'm not chowing down on raw fish while the people around me look on in horror."

The Dark-Hunter completely dropped his newspaper to reveal a raw, half-eaten Icelandic Cod sitting on the kitchen table next to three cleaned skeletons of fish he had already eaten before Andrea arrived. He gave her a hard stare before he took a bite out of his breakfast. Despite the shock on the girl's face, he chewed with his mouth wide open, making as much noise as he could. Once it was at a consistency that he was able to swallow, he stuck out his tongue to show his assistant the food he had just chewed. After being satisfied that he horrified the girl enough, he swallowed the fish mush and chuckled.

Thankfully, Andrea was not without a sense of humor. She laughed along with the Dark-Hunter, "You're lucky you have me as a Squire, because another squire would have run off by now."

Dreki snorted, "You're lucky you're squiring me, because any other Dark-Hunter would have killed you a long time ago."

They both shared a moment of laughter before a knock was heard at the door. The two exchanged confused looks. Who would be at the door at eight o'clock at night?

Andrea closed her eyes and sighed, "I've got it."

"No you don't." The Dark-Hunter commanded as he stood from his seat, "It could be some weirdo."

The dragon walked quickly to the door. Along the way, he thought of several reasons why someone would be knocking on his door. None of them were good. He prepared himself for the worst, but what he didn't prepare for was someone merely trying to deliver a package.

The Katagari quirked an eyebrow at the brown box near his feet. "Andrea!" Dreki called out to his squire, "Did you order something online?"

"No! Why?" she called out.

Dreki gave an annoyed sigh before picking up the package and carefully bringing it to the kitchen. He gently set the box on top of the kitchen table next to where Andrea was eating her dinner. "That's why," he grumbled, "I freaked out over a fucking box."

Andrea shrugged. "Well, it's not for me."

Without inspecting the box further, Dreki pulled out a small pocket knife from his jeans and cut open the tape that held the box closed. Andrea's eyes widened at seeing the dragon open the package with such haste and frustration, but it was to be expected. Once his adrenaline was coursing through him there was little to stop him from attacking something.

Dreki pushed aside the protective packaging materials to reveal a small, wooden jewelry box. He took it out to further examine it. The moment his fingertips touched the jewelry box he could feel a strange power emit from it, a power that had him in awe of it's strength.

"Uh, Dreki, you don't know if that's yours or not." Andrea pointed out.

He didn't respond as he was entranced by the jewelry box and the magic it held. There wasn't any remarkable design to the box, for the exception of the lid that had a nicely carved out heart in the middle of it. Yet, it was distinct enough for him to recognize it from somewhere, and he knew in the very depths of his being that he had felt it's power before. Hard as he tried, though, he could not reach the memory of where he had seen the box or felt it's sorcery before.

Something compelled the Night Fury to open the box, as if the very contents were calling out to him. He couldn't help but to lift the lid to see what was pulling at his soul. He reached in and took out a dragon scale necklace that he hadn't seen in nearly a thousand years.

Pain tore through Dreki's already battered heart, a pain so severe that it stole his breath. The last time he laid eyes on the necklace his love had it around his slender neck. It was a gift given to Hiccup after they first became mates, a symbol of his eternal love and commitment. He still remembered the day so very, unbearably clearly.

* * *

_Toothless stalked Hiccup quietly. The young Viking was sitting, his back to him, in front of the lake. No doubt he was sketching it again, which was good for him for the boy was distracted and probably wouldn't notice his approach. A smirk made it's way to his lips. _

_Once he was only steps away from his new mate, he launched himself onto his lover's back, wrapping his arms around the boy. The teen gasped loudly as he shuttered from the shock. Toothless laughed as he felt his mate's heart beat so hard that he did not doubt that it would somehow find a way to escape his chest. _

"_Toothless!" Hiccup scolded breathlessly, "What is wrong with you? You nearly gave me a heart attack!" _

_The dragon kissed the boy's red tinted cheek in apology. "Aw, I didn't mean to scare you, my love." Toothless chuckled while tightening his grip on the young Viking. _

"_Yes you did," Hiccup huffed while gripping onto his sketch book tighter, "You overgrown lizard." _

_A grin made it's way to Toothless' face. It was hard to be intimated by a teen who looked adorable while he was angry. "Okay maybe a little, but its only because of how cute you look after I sneak up on you." His grin only grew when Hiccup's cheeks turned an even deeper shade of red. _

"_You're not going to get off the hook that easily," Hiccup growled. Toothless had to stifle a laugh. Hiccup's growls was akin to that of a growl from a puppy. Besides, he knew his mate would never hurt him even if he had the capacity to. _

"_Well," Toothless started before he nuzzled his mate's neck, "Would it help if I said I brought you a gift?" _

"_Perhaps," Hiccup sounded intrigued. _

"_You're going to have to close your eyes then." the dragon whispered softly in the Viking's ear, successfully earning himself a shutter from the boy. _

_Hiccup complied with his mate's request. Toothless reluctantly pulled away from his lover in order to take off the necklace he had hidden in his tunic. He looked down and admired the work he had done on the gift. It took him several nights sneaking into the forge to drill a hole into his own scale, finding the perfect leather cord and pouring his magical essence into the scale to finally complete it. After the moment of pride, he gently put the necklace on Hiccup. _

"_Okay," Toothless whispered, "You can open you're eyes." _

_The young Viking opened his eyes and looked down to see the dark scale that rested upon his chest. Tears gathered in his eyes. "Is it really…?" Hiccup tried to ask, but his voice betrayed him. _

_Toothless gathered him into his arms again, and nodded against the crook of his neck. "Yes, but it's not just a scale. It is infused with my magic, so if you ever need me and I'm not there, just take a hold of it and you'll have my strength and my love."_

_

* * *

_

"Dreki?" Andrea snapped the Dark-Hunter out of his memory, "Are you alright?"

He quickly realized that her concern stemmed from the tears that were freely spilling from his eyes. He closed them and took a deep breath to try and calm himself, but there were too many emotions that were coursing through him. He succeeded in stopping more tears from flowing, a practice that he perfected over the centuries, but he couldn't bottle the emotions that had already escaped.

"Yeah," Dreki chocked out while turning his back to the squire, " I - uh, need to get ready to go."

Before he could escape to his room, however, Andrea gently took hold of his wrist. He swiftly turned to snap at her, to scream at her to leave him alone, to make sure she knew exactly how much of an annoying brat she was. Maybe then he would be able relieve some of the anger, some of the sadness that he kept within himself that threatened to drive him insane. But, his rage died as fast as it had been born when he saw the concern and sadness in her soft blue eyes. The only emotion that was left within him was regret.

"I'm not going to try to force something out of you, Dreki." she began softly, barely above a whisper, "I care about you more than to demand that you talk about something that brings you that much hurt. All I want to know is if you're going to be okay."

The dragon smiled even with tears gathering in his eyes again. He was reminded of what it was like to be cared for. He was reminded that he would once again be cared for by his true love. At the thought of his reborn mate, he felt the sense of calm that he craved for. "Yeah, I'm going to be okay."

"Good!" The girl returned the Dark-Hunter's smile, although her eyes still held worry. She slowly pulled her hands away from his wrists, and allowed him to get ready to go hunting.

Once he came back downstairs, Andrea ran to him with a serious yet calm expression that was betrayed by the hint of fear in her eyes. "What's wrong?" Dreki asked with concern.

"I was about to throw away the box but then I saw this." Andrea explained while handing him a small, handwritten note to the Katagari, "What do you think it means?"

The Dark-Hunter read the note hastily, and then once again more slowly, not believing what he was reading.

"_Thought I would give you back something that belonged to you. Too bad you could never do me the same service. Have a nice date Friday night." _

A cold chill ran down Dreki's spine.


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N: **Oh dear gods, I'm so sorry for not updating this sooner. Trust me there were very good reasons why I didn't have this done sooner. I'm also sorry for producing such a short chapter! I hope you all like it even though it is really short. I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible.

* * *

"Phone, phone." Dreki said under his breath while patting his jean pockets to feel for his cellphone. He needed to contact Hiccup, _now. _When he could not feel the familiar protruding square he cursed. "Where's my fucking phone?"

"Should I be worried?" Andrea asked gently, wanting to understand what was happening, but not wanting to be the target of his aggression.

Dreki didn't answer her. He growled to himself before flashing from the foot of the stairs to his bedroom. He threw open the closet door and reached over the top shelf. It took him a few frustrating moments of feeling for the phone to finally find it.

His hands shaking, he flipped the phone open and pressed the button that would lead him to his contacts. Once he found Hiccup's number he pressed the "call" button, and waited anxiously for his mate to answer.

* * *

Hiccup hummed along to the music that was playing on the background of his computer while he did some last minute homework. He hardly noticed that his phone was ringing until he recognized the ring tone that was playing. It was the ring tone he gave for Dreki!

"Shit!" he cursed out loud before answering it before last ring, "Hello?"

"Hiccup!" Dreki nearly shouted in what sounded like relief, "Hey!"

"H-hey." Hiccup responded back with too much excitement. Never had he wished more that he wasn't a dork, and that he had much more social skill. After all the feelings he had discovered for his savior, the last thing he wanted was for Dreki to think of him as an overeager loser. "What's up?"

"Nothing, I just uh-" Dreki paused for a moment, "just uh- wanted to know if we're still on for Friday night?"

Hiccup thought the pause was a little strange, but he didn't dwell further on it. "Yeah, of course."

"Cool," Dreki acknowledged, "Uh, so do you have a ride there? I'm sorry I didn't ask before."

Hiccup's lips formed a small smile. _What awesome thing did I do to deserve someone whose considerate and handsome? _"Yeah, I can get there." Hiccup responded happily, "Thanks for asking."

"It's really no problem," Dreki chuckled, "So, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yup." Hiccup smiled widened at the thought of seeing his rescuer again. He could hardly wait to feel his date's lips on his own again, to feel the touch of his skin…

Dreki's voice forced him out of the fantasies that were beginning to form. "Alright, talk to you later."

"Later." Hiccup pressed the end button on his phone, and placed it gently at the end of the desk. He leaned back against his chair, and focused his gaze up at the ceiling above him. Innocent fantasies floated around in his head of kissing him, embracing him and being loved by him. He silently hoped that everyone of them came true.

* * *

Dreki sighed with relief; Hiccup was okay. _They haven't gotten to him yet, whoever they are, but I won't let anyone hurt him. _As he made his vow, he made his way out into the night to hunt.

* * *

Hiccup waited patiently outside the movie theater, his eyes constantly searching for any sign of Dreki. _Maybe he isn't going to show. I mean, come on Hiccup, who are you kidding? He's hot and you're not, it's just the natural order of things._ He growled at himself for letting his paranoia start to get to him. Of course he wasn't there, the teen was more than twenty minutes early. _I'll give up when he doesn't show in an hour. _

The calling of his name shook him out of his thoughts. He turned to the direction of the deep, masculine voice calling out to him, and saw his date running over to him. He looked absolutely captivating in his black turtle neck, blue jeans and dark winter boots. Hiccup's face was painted with a light blush and shy smile. _See? He did show up, and God does he look good. _

The student suddenly felt very insecure about his own looks. He only wore a school sweatshirt, old jeans and worn sneakers. _Curse being a poor student. _

"Hey!" Dreki greeted breathlessly once he neared his date. Hiccup assumed his breathlessness was because of his running from the parking lot to his location, but he was mistaken. The moment the dragon took one look at the beauty that was his reborn mate, all the air seemed to dissipate from his lungs.

"Hey, you showed!" Hiccup joked with little sarcasm. The teen didn't want to admit it to himself, but he was honestly surprised.

Dreki smiled before leaning down and kissing Hiccup softly on the lips. "Of course I did."

The student didn't respond due to the sudden pleasant fog surrounding his mind left behind by the kiss. His mental capacity allowed him only to chuckle shyly and follow Dreki to the end of the ticket line. He heard a question being asked, but his mind was somewhere far away, so he nodded not bothering to know what was being asked. His mind only wanted to be preoccupied with Dreki and his wonderful lips.

How could one kiss make him feel like this? He felt as if he was floating, or even flying. He was so wonderfully warm despite the coolness of the ocean air. His heart was trying to break out his ribcage and his lungs didn't want to take in enough air. Dreki's kisses were incredible; no kisses he had ever experienced could compare to his.

His mind escaped the pleasant haze when he realized they were both at the front of the line, and that Dreki was already buying his ticket. Hiccup, embarrassed that he wasn't able to pay enough attention to buy his date a ticket, reached for his wallet to buy his own before Dreki turned to him with two in his hand.

Hiccup quirked an eyebrow. "So do I pay for the food, then?" he asked as they both headed inside the theater.

Dreki chuckled as he handed his ticket to a theater employee that greeted them at the door, "No, I'm covering all of it." Once he got his the stub back he thanked the employee and stepped aside to allow Hiccup to mimic his actions.

"Why? I'm the one who asked you on the date." Hiccup argued quietly while he followed Dreki to the end of the concession stand line once their tickets were checked.

"Why are you whispering?" Dreki asked out loud.

Hiccup's expression turned annoyed. "I don't want to alert any homophobes that might be in the area."

"Oh yeah, wouldn't want anyone to run at us with pitchforks and torches." Dreki retorted sarcastically, "Calm down, Hiccup. We're in northern California in the 21st century. Besides, we're not the only gay couple here." He inclined his head to indicate the two men who were holding hands in the line next to them.

Hiccup's eyes widened slightly. "Oh," he quietly said before his features turned annoyed again, "Hey! You're not answering my question!"

Dreki smirked finding Hiccup's behavior oddly endearing. "Hiccup, can't I just treat you to something? Why are you being so defensive?"

Hiccup's gaze fell to his shoes. "I don't know. It just sort of makes me feel like 'the girl', you know?"

The dragon snaked an arm around the boy's shoulders, and pulled him close. The moment Hiccup felt his side press up against his date, his cheeks flushed and a new sense of warmth flooded him. The Dark-Hunter whispered softly into his reborn mate's ear, "Or maybe I'm treated you like someone who deserves to be taken out once in a while."

Hiccup melted. He couldn't fathom how this man could, time after time, send him to his very own piece of heaven. But, there he was in his own little world, stupidly happy as ever; a sloppy grin plastered on his face.

Once they ordered their snacks they walked to their theater. When the student looked up at the title of the movie they were going to be watching, his heart froze. It was a horror movie, and not just any horror movie, but the horror movie that scared even the most courageous of his friends. He remembered suddenly that he had nodded to a question that must have been about the movie they were going to watch. _Oh no…_

Dreki took note of how tense Hiccup became. He was relaxed and carefree one moment, but in the next he looked as if he was preparing for his own funeral. Concern for his mate reached his features. "Hiccup? Are you alright?"

The boy remained as rigid as a statue in front of the theater's entrance. Hiccup swallowed a nervous lump in his throat. "Yeah," he forced a smile, "I'm fine."

The dragon knew he was lying; he could smell the fear that was coming off of the student. At first, he felt his defenses instinctively rise in preparation to attack whatever was threatening his mate, but when he saw the boy glance quickly back and forth from the movie title to the floor he understood what was happening.

"Hiccup?" Dreki began gently, "Are you afraid of horror movies?"

The teen nodded slightly. "A little, but that's the fun of horror movies right?" He faked a small laugh as he walked into the theater.

Dreki knew that the boy was utterly terrified rather than just a little scared, which was why he put a hand on his shoulder to stop him. The student stopped to turn toward Dreki with a look that was between shame and confusion. "I'm not going to be upset at you if you want to see a different movie."

Hiccup's eyes shifted away from Dreki's for a moment. He truly considered going to see a different movie, but he was more afraid of embarrassing himself in such a way than watching a stupid movie. Besides, his savior would be sitting right next to him, and there he would feel safe no matter what.

His eyes shifted back to his date's before giving him a genuine smile. "I'll be alright."

The Katagari could feel the tension slowly leave his mate's body, but it didn't relieve him. Hiccup was forcing himself to watch the movie, he knew it. He also knew better than to argue with the teen. The boy, in his past life, was stubborn to the point of suicide, and he seemed just as stubborn in this life as well. If he once again offered to take them to a different movie, Hiccup would probably take offense to it.

So, with an internal sigh of defeat, he followed Hiccup to their seats.

* * *

Dreki was ultimately happy with Hiccup's decision to stay. There had only been one scene that scared the boy, a Ouija board had caught on fire, which caused him to snuggle up against the dragon for safety. But, as the movie progressed, it became less and less frightening, and the tension that the student first felt had melted away. His date had, however, continued to comfortably rest against him.

Bored with the movie, Dreki began to just watch Hiccup. He remembered holding the young Viking like this in the dark while the boy watched the stars twinkle in the heavens, and the dragon admired the light shining in his mate's eyes. But, those beautiful eyes were now behind thin-framed glasses, and the light was the reflection of moving pictures. A bittersweet emotion blossomed in his heart.

The Dark-Hunter felt Hiccup shutter a bit in his seat. He looked back at the movie to see that it was ending with a creepy looking woman staring evilly into the camera. Even for someone who fought undead creatures on a nightly basis, it was still a bit jolting. "Oh dear ugly." Dreki whispered.

Hiccup chuckled quietly. "You're telling me," he whispered, "I think I'm going to have nightmares for the rest of my life."

The lights began to brighten with movie's credits. Dreki felt himself grow disappointed knowing that he was going to be forced to let go of his beloved, but it didn't seem as Hiccup wanted to get up. So, he continued to sit there comfortably, an arm around the boy's shoulders until the entire reel of credits ended.

Hiccup turned to his date with a questioning look, wondering why he hadn't stood up. It was then that he noticed that he had trapped Dreki by leaning back against his arm. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean-"

Dreki smiled brightly at Hiccup. "It's alright, I was really comfortable."

The student returned the smile before standing up and offering his hand to help him up. The dragon happily took his mate's hand, taking a moment to just feel the softness of the skin beneath his fingers. He pulled himself up with just a little too much force causing him to awkwardly crash into Hiccup. The Dark-Hunter held onto his mate to keep them both from falling, but not before their groins brushed against each other.

Dreki bit back a whimper as Hiccup held back a small moan. The combination of a sex-deprived dragon and a sexually frustrated teenage boy made the situation extremely unstable. They both secretly wished that they had enough privacy and guts to just rip each others clothes off and fuck like animals. It didn't help that one of the two really was an animal whose instincts told him to fulfill his desires messy and fast.

The tension was broken by the two laughing and breaking away from each other.

"Sorry about that," Hiccup chuckled nervously, "I guess I don't know my own strength."

"You definitely gave me a false sense of security." The dragon agreed as he motioned for his mate to go ahead of him.

The two made their way out of the theater and into the cold. Neither were very happy with the weather, although Hiccup was the one who suffered the most from it. He shivered and rubbed his arms in an effort to gain some heat, but it wasn't until Dreki wrapped a familiar arm around his shoulder that he truly began to feel warmer.

Suddenly the night chill didn't seem so bad.

"Where would you like to eat?" Dreki asked. They began to walk in the direction where most of the restaurants were in the outdoor mall.

Without missing a beat, Hiccup announced, "I could really go for a burger right about now."

"I know just the place."

* * *

Hiccup tore through his burger like a wolf who hadn't eaten in weeks. Dreki was usually the one who could scare people with how much he could eat, but the college student was beating him at both amount and speed. It was shocking and quite amusing.

"Man, this is really good!" the teen said after swallowing on enormous bite out of his already half-eaten food.

"Yeah," Dreki agreed with a nod, "It's one of my favorite places." The dragon also took a large bite out of his burger, but he chewed it much more efficiently than Hiccup, who continued to swallow whole pieces.

He wondered if Hiccup always ate this way. It was that thought that made him realize that he never had eaten with the boy before, at least not like this. It made the experience much more satisfying.

The Dark-Hunter's attention was brought fully back to Hiccup when he heard him mutter, "Oh no." He looked to the direction that Hiccup's widened eyes were looking towards to see a blonde female walk into the restaurant. Dreki could feel his entire being fill with an almost uncontrollable rage. It was not just any blonde, it was _her. _


	6. Chapter 5

**AN:** So while I should be studying for my finals that are in 4 DAYS I decided I would rather supply you good people the next chapter of my story. I promised someone that I would have this done and uploaded by yesterday, but alas, I could not. I felt so bad about that, that I woke up extra early this morning and typed out and edited this chapter up until now. I hope you enjoy it, because I have a feeling that I won't update very soon. NOT A LONG TIME FROM NOW, but not too quickly either. I'm tired and I need a break.

* * *

He knew those cold, calculating eyes. He would never forget them; they would forever haunt his nightmares. _Astrid. _

But, there was something about this girl that was distinctly _not _Astrid. It was the way she carried herself. Astrid had carried herself with a confidence that bordered on arrogance while this girl's every movement was insecure and unsure. He was mistaken; she could not be a cold-blooded killer, but the way she made Hiccup uneasy still made him not want to play nice.

Dreki kept himself from snarling as the girl made her approach to their table.

"Hey Hiccup! Didn't expect to see you here." she said awkwardly while trying to put on her best smile.

"Why?" Hiccup growled, "Because you dumped me for another guy I should be moping around my dorm?"

Dreki was immediately intrigued by the word "dumped". So, the boy did have a relationship before him? He felt both jealousy and pity towards her. This girl was stupid enough to let someone as wonderful as Hiccup go. Oh well, her loss he supposed.

"Look Hiccup," she started with a frustrated tone that Dreki certainly did not like, "I really didn't find a new guy. I-I just said that because I was hurt that he kept rejecting me._" _

Dreki smirked to himself. _Oh, I see what's going on. _Before he could stop himself, he impulsively retorted, "He kept rejecting you because he didn't want a disease from your dirty ass."

The girl's glaring blue eyes immediately focused on the dragon, "Excuse me, but who the hell are you?"

Dreki's smirk grew, "I happen to be the one who comforted Hiccup when you left him, if you know what I mean." He gave her an obvious wink. "Now why don't you be a doll and bother someone else for a while, 'kay?"

"You're kidding, right?" She turned from Dreki to Hiccup. "He's kidding, right?"

The Dark-Hunter could see a wicked smile form on the Hiccup's lips. He could almost hear the evil ideas that were more than likely spinning in his head. The need for revenge reached his forest green eyes. "He's not kidding."

Hiccup's ex-girlfriend snorted obnoxiously. "You're lying."

Hiccup responded by standing from his seat, squeezing past the girl and taking a seat on Dreki's lap. Before anyone could make a sound, the teen turned to Dreki and planted a rough kiss on his lips. Neither of the two heard the girl gasp or storm away, much too preoccupied in making the kiss more passionate. It took them a few moments before either of the two noticed that the girl had already left.

The college student was utterly mortified by the end of the kiss. He was impulsive, but not _that _impulsive. Fearing the reaction of the crowd at the restaurant, he jumped out of Dreki's lap and briskly dragged his date by the hand out of the place. Their unfinished food was left behind.

Dreki laughed hysterically as he continued to be dragged by his mate. "Hiccup, that was so great!"

Hiccup stopped and turned toward Dreki, his green eyes glaring daggers. "That wasn't great! That was - okay, maybe it was a little great, but still- "

"Come on! You know that was well worth it!" Dreki said while putting a comforting arm around the boy's shoulders.

Hiccup's eyes took a less menacing look to them. Being honest with himself, he had to admit that Dreki was right. It was so satisfying to see his ex-girlfriend getting exactly what she deserved. She learned a valuable lesson - be careful what you wish for. At the thought, the evil smile returned to his features and a blush painted his cheeks. "Okay, I guess it was worth it." Hiccup admitted out loud.

Dreki gave the student a soft kiss on the cheek. "That's my boy! So who is she, anyway?"

Hiccup gave a frustrated sigh, "You just met Rachel Hofferson, my first and only girlfriend."

_They're from the same family, that explains it. _That was the answer to one mystery, but Dreki couldn't help but wonder about the last part of Hiccup's sentence. "So, have you had any boyfriends before?"

Hiccup's blush spread to the rest of his face. _Oh man, whatever I say is going to make me sound like some naïve virgin. _"Well, uh- you see the thing is -"

"So I'm your first guy, huh?" To Hiccup's utter annoyance, Dreki looked way too smug.

"I didn't say that!" the student growled, "And don't look so confident! Who is saying anything about a 'first'?"

Dreki gave him a very sly look. "I just meant I'm your first male date - you're the one implying something else." The dragon waggled his eyebrows at the boy. The student continued to glare at him, until the dragon assured him that he was just kidding.

Hiccup chuckled and leaned on the dragon's shoulder as they walked down the row of restaurants and shops.

* * *

There was some slight window shopping, Hiccup pointing out the new releases of books he was hoping to get while Dreki pointed out the video games that he was definitely going to buy. This led to conversing about their interests and hobbies, which then led to a conversation about their personal lives. Both men disclosed a lot of information that was, until then, kept secret.

But when Dreki asked about Hiccup's family the student became near unresponsive. "I'm sorry," Dreki apologized softly, "I shouldn't have asked."

"Me and my dad haven't spoken since my mom died three years ago." Hiccup admitted; shame laced his words.

Dreki stayed silent with the exceptive of a hum of acknowledgment. He didn't know what to say. There wasn't anything to say. He wasn't going to bring up the subject again, that is until Hiccup was ready to talk to him about it.

He heard Hiccup give a short, sarcastic laugh, "I always heard my dad say that she was bad for his political career. She was always saying things like auras and past lives, and that kind of crazy talk will only hurt his chances of getting re-elected. When he found out that she had cancer the first thing he did was file for divorce and remarry a woman that was only a few years older than I was. The last thing he said to me was that he couldn't keep wasting his time on taking care of a sick woman and her insane son." Hiccup wiped a tear away from his eye, "He never called me his son, his boy. My mother was the only person who ever really loved me, and now she's gone."

The dragon felt tears gather in the back of his eyes. His Hiccup, his beloved, his mate had gone through so much pain in his new life. No one deserved that amount of hurt, especially Hiccup. Dreki wished that somehow he could find a way to take the pain away, to wash it away and replace it with the love he so rightfully deserved.

Hiccup's tear-filled eyes met with Dreki's in order to find some sort of comfort. He could plainly see that his story struck a chord with his savior. The student smiled warmly. "Hey, don't get all weepy on me, I'm the one who should be acting emo not you."

Dreki chuckled while he wiped away his tears with the back of his hand. "I'm not getting _weepy, _these are very manly tears I assure you." Hiccup laughed; joy replaced the look of sadness in his beautiful eyes. "I wish there was a way I could do that for you all the time."

Hiccup cocked his head to the side in confusion. "Do what?"

"Make you smile, make you laugh, make you happy" the Dark-Hunter explained softly, tenderly.

Hiccup's expression turned oddly serious for a moment. His eyes gazed deeply into Dreki's as if he was examining his very heart, his very soul. In a heartbeat, the boy pressed himself against his savior. He leaned in and whispered softly in his ear, "If you want to make me happy than I'll you have to do is kiss me. When you kiss me everything else in the world disappears."

Dreki immediately obliged him, desperate to comfort the boy. Hiccup's eyes widened as he gasped into the sudden kiss, but quickly recovered to return the affection. It was soft and gentle. There was nothing sexual in the act, merely an attempt to heal the deep wounds within them both. When they parted there wasn't want or lust in their eyes, there was love.

That was when Hiccup realized, with the tiniest bit of fear, that he was madly in love with his savior. Dreki, a man he hardly knew, managed to capture his heart in a brief moment of affection. Or, maybe it was even before then? He accepted that maybe he would never know, but what he did know was that he couldn't live without him.

"Hiccup?" Dreki called out bringing the student out of his thoughts, "Are you alright?"

Hiccup felt a pleasant shiver run down his spine at the sound of his name on the dragon's tongue. "Yeah, why?"

Dreki smiled. "Because you've been staring at me for a good few minutes, now."

In all honesty, Dreki was not really concerned about the student. He knew exactly why he was staring at him for he had seen the same look in his eyes long ago. It was the boy remembering the love he had for the Dark-Hunter. What was even more wonderful was that Hiccup remembered so fast, only having a few hours of contact with him. He nearly wept with happiness.

His statement had the desired affect; Hiccup flushed from embarrassment. "I-I'm s-sorry!" the student stuttered, "I was just thinking, you know, not being creepy or anything." His eyes darted from side to side suspiciously.

The dragon chuckled lightly, enjoying the adorable display Hiccup was making for him. "You are just too cute!" He leaned forward to give Hiccup a small, quick kiss on the cheek, and to give into his urge to embrace the boy tightly. Hiccup returned the hug with almost equal force.

Unfortunately, the embrace broke away prematurely due to the sky deciding that it was the perfect time to begin pouring rain onto the earth. Dreki took a hold of Hiccup's hand and led them to the nearest shelter, a coffee shop, cursing the entire way.

The dragon growled, "I hate the weather." There he was enjoying the first few peaceful moments he had in centuries, and the weather maliciously forced him out of his happy place. The fates were laughing at him.

Hiccup glared outside the window, his feelings not differing much from his date's. The one benefit of his anger was that he didn't notice how cold he really was. It wasn't until the Dark-Hunter informed him that he was shivering that he began to feel the coldness of the rainwater on his skin. "I hate the weather." he growled much in the way Dreki had a moment ago.

"You want some coffee or hot chocolate to warm you up?" Dreki offered with a soft smile.

Hiccup smiled, but shook his head. "That's okay. It wouldn't do much good anyway, since my clothes are still wet."

Dreki began to feel a bit of disappointment knowing that their date was going to have to end soon. They were both soaked to the bone, and while he could handle it, he knew that Hiccup would suffer until he had something dry on. "Do you want to go home?"

Hiccup's gaze went to floor, a hint of sadness in his eyes. "I don't want to, I love spending time with you, it's just I'm probably going to have to go home soon anyway since the last shuttle leaves in-" Hiccup glanced at his watch before he growled, "Shit! It just left!"

Dreki quirked an eyebrow in mild confusion. "You don't have a car?"

The student shook his head. "Don't have the money."

"Well why didn't you say so?" the dragon asked, although he knew the answer. Hiccup was too prideful to ask for a favor, probably afraid to seem like he couldn't take care of himself. Before the boy could open his mouth to answer, he said in a much kinder tone than he used before, "I'll drop you off, if you don't mind."

The look of embarrassment and shame returned to Hiccup's face again. "No, it's okay! I can take the bus or something. I'll find a way home."

The Dark-Hunter took a hold of the boy's shoulders, and said more firmly, "I insist."

"O-kay, then."

* * *

As they made their way to the car, Dreki could sense that they were being followed. If it were under normal circumstances he would not be alarmed, he could defend himself and his love with one claw tied behind his back, but these weren't normal circumstances. He remembered the package, the necklace, the note. Whoever sent those things knew them from their past lives, which meant that they were old and probably very powerful.

That person could be the one following them, and that was something Dreki did not like. It would be likely this thing would follow them to Hiccup's college, and he could not risk them knowing where the boy was or that he was alone. He would not allow his mate to be hurt. Not again.

There had to be a way to convince Hiccup to stay with him, at least until tomorrow night. By then he would find a way to shake them off, somehow.

But a blunt, _'Wanna stay over at my place for the night?' _might not win over his mate's trust. As much as he didn't want to, as it went against his very animal nature, he would have to come up with a clever lie.

Dreki calmly entered the car, followed by Hiccup, who was in so much of hurry to get away from the rain that he didn't notice what kind of car he was in. It wasn't until Hiccup had put his glasses back on after wiping away the water from them, that he noticed he was in one of the most expensive cars in the world. He suddenly felt the need to point this fact out to it's owner. "Is - Is this really your car? It's more expensive than my entire 4 years of schooling!"

_Yes, this is a luxury car, isn't it? _Dreki hid his internal smirk. Hiccup came up with a lie all for him. He just had to hope that Hiccup knew nothing about cars. "Yes," he sighed dramatically, "This is my stupid anti-rain car!"

"Anti-rain?" Hiccup repeated with a hint of alarm.

"Yup," Dreki nearly whimpered, "I love this car, but unfortunately the wheels aren't really made to drive safely through the rain, but don't worry, it's only after a while where they start losing their grip on the road, so you'll be okay. I just have to pray that I'll make it home."

"Are you serious?" The student asked with a lot more alarm than before. "No way! I won't have you drop me off if it means you'll get killed in a wreck."

_Oh thank the gods that Hiccup is stupid about cars. _It was getting very difficult to not start laughing, but Dreki put on a rather well-faked frown. "That's going to be a problem, because I won't let you go on a public bus full of freaks this late at night."

Hiccup pouted. "I've ridden the bus many times at night, and nothing's happen to me. Besides, I can take care of myself."

"My point is that I don't want you to have to 'take care of yourself' especially since I'm perfectly capable of taking you home safely." The dragon said forcefully.

"Safely?" Hiccup snorted, "Yeah, right."

"Look, you don't want me to die and I don't want you to be in danger, right?" the dragon pointed out, "So, we'll just have to come up with a compromise."

Hiccup nodded in agreement. Unbeknownst to Dreki, the student was actually hoping that his date would come up with a solution that involved either the two spending the night at his dorm or where ever Dreki lived. Not for anything intimate, mind you, just so that they could spend more time together. _Yeah, that's it. _

He waited for Dreki to say something, but he kept silent. He looked as if he was thinking of a solution, but nothing was coming to mind. Hiccup sighed, knowing once again he was going to potentially embarrass himself. _Or maybe not? _

The student asked, "Where do you live?" It was a very broad question that implied an assortment of things. If it didn't seem like Dreki was up to spend the night with him than he could always say that he was just gauging a halfway point between them.

_Good Job, Hiccup! For once you're playing it cool! _

"I live in Carmel."

_Damn it! The mall is the halfway point! _Hiccup became flustered again. Dreki hadn't even given him and answer that would have allowed him to measure his feelings about the rest of the night. He felt like banging his head against the nearest hard surface.

"You know," Dreki started with a false unsure tone, "What we could do is spend the night at my house, you know, since its closer."

"Yeah, let's do that!" Hiccup said eagerly, which he immediately regretting when Dreki began to smirk. He tried to recover by saying, "You know, because it's a solution to all our problems, and we'll be able to spend more time with each other to do date stuff like talk and whatnot."

"Should I be worried about the 'whatnot' part? Don't want you to jump my bones when I'm the most vulnerable." The Dark-Hunter teased.

"No, no, no! Nothing like that!" Hiccup nearly shouted in defense. When his date started to laugh, he blushed and growled. "Besides, who says 'jump my bones' anymore? How old are you, like 50?"

Dreki chuckled at the thought of his real age. _Oh you have no idea, my mate. _"I happen to only be 27, thank you very much." He answered back sarcastically as he started his car. He began to drive out of the parking spot and toward the exit of the mall when karma hit him hard.

Karma is a funny thing. The entire evening he had been making fun of Hiccup lightly, not to be malicious, but because he loved the adorable blush that would paint his cheeks whenever he was embarrassed. So, it was about time that the universe paid him back for all his teasing he had done that night by playing the end of Florence and the Machine's "Howl".

"-_pure as a wedding dress _

_Until I wrap myself inside your arms I cannot rest_

_The saints can't help me now, the ropes have been unbound_

_I hunt for you with bloodied feet across the hallow'ed ground" _blared loudly from the speakers.

Dreki was usually cool and confident, but for the first time in years, he wanted to crawl into a hole. He was about to shut off his iPod and come up with some sort of explanation for the girly music, but he began to hear Hiccup quietly sing along. He had never once heard his mate sing, and the sound was utterly beautiful.

His pride temporarily forgotten, Dreki merely lowered the volume so he could hear Hiccup more clearly. The teen immediately stopped singing when the music became quieter in an effort to not be heard. "No, no, don't stop." The dragon almost begged, "I loved it."

The student turned to him with a look of surprise. He didn't think his savior could hear him over the music, but apparently he was loud enough for his date to appreciate his voice. Feeling rather confident because of the compliment, he once again began to sing along with the song.

"_If you could only see the beast you've made of me_

_I held it in but now it seems you've set it running free_

_The saints can't help me now, the ropes have been unbound_

_I hunt for you with bloodied feet across the hallow'ed ground" _

"Hiccup, you have such an amazing singing voice." Dreki complimented with astonishment. Who knew his beloved had a hidden talent for something other than drawing?

Hiccup chuckled bashfully, "Thanks, my mom used to tell me that all the time."

"Your mom had an eye for talent."

Hiccup beamed. It was the best compliment he had ever received.

* * *

"There is no way you live _here_."

Hiccup was in awe of the mansion they had driven up to, but he was also fearful as to how Dreki was able to acquire such a lavish home. _He's got to be a part of the mob, or some kind of drug dealer. _

"My job pays really well." Dreki explained nonchalantly. He drove up the long, winding driveway to the front of the entrance of his home, and parked the car in it's usual spot.

Seeing how truly massive the house was from up close did nothing to ease Hiccup's paranoia . His expression turned sour. _Yup, I knew he was too good to be true. _

The dragon turned to the teen and suggested, "Okay, on three, we run inside. Okay?" Hiccup nodded. "One. Two. Three!"

The two men opened their doors, closed them, and ran to shelter simultaneously. The hilarity of the situation seemed to hit them in unison, as well, for they both laughed as they made their way inside.

The Dark-Hunter closed and locked the front door before leaning his back against it. "Phew," he sighed, "So now that we're re-soaked, why don't we look for some dry clothes."

Hiccup chuckled, "Sounds like a plan to me."

Dreki stepped forward to lead the way up the stairs and into a furnished bedroom. He kept his clothes, some furniture and a regular bed in one of the many bedrooms he had on the off chance that he would have a visitor. He was glad he had the forethought to do so, since he could already sense that Hiccup was anxious about the house itself. He didn't need to have Hiccup worry about why exactly the man slept on a huge doggy bed.

The dragon walked to the dresser and looked inside of it for some clothes that might fit his beloved's petite frame. He picked out a shirt that would fit a bit loosely and some sweatpants that could be adjusted using the drawstring. When he turned to hand over the clothes, he saw that Hiccup still had not walked into the room, instead choosing to stay in the hallway until he was invited in.

"Its alright, Hiccup, you can come in." Dreki encouraged.

Hiccup smiled softly and walked over to stand next to his date. This created an unexpected tension between them. The dragon didn't think that being so close to the boy would affect him as much as it actually did, but there was something about him being close, all to himself and in the privacy of his own home that made his body react. It didn't help that he knew that once he left the boy alone he was going to undress. The recently familiar feeling of desire began to course through him again.

But, desire was not just affecting Dreki. Hiccup, too, felt drawn to his savior. The look in his date's eyes caused an unbearable heat to course throughout his entire body, a heat he needed to relieve.

Before his rationality could respond, the teen dropped the clothes that were in his hands to wrap his arms around the dragon's neck, and leaned in to kiss him deeply. Dreki wrapped his arms around the boy, and pulled him closer. They were locked in a passionate embrace, but they didn't stay immobile for long. Faster than their sensibilities could react, the pair hastily found their way to the bed.

* * *

**AN:** MWHAHAHAHA, I'm evil aren't I? Well, until next time.


	7. Chapter 6

**AN: **Hello fans! Yes, I know it has been a very long time since I updated. Originally I was going to update this in the matter of a few weeks, which then turned into a month and a half. From moving back north for college, to finding a new apartment, getting a job and doing a whole bunch of homework, I was finally able to get this done. If it hadn't been for nagging/supportive friends (you know who you are) I probably would have given up on this. **BEWARE!** The sex scene is first I have EVER written, so its probably disappointing at best, so please be gentle.

* * *

Volundr sat atop the tallest building in the mall area, and watched as Toothless drove Hiccup towards the city of Carmel. He felt the tiniest bit of disappointment that the Dark-Hunter didn't simply drop off his mate at his campus, since it meant that his plans would have to be delayed for at least a night, but he wasn't worried. There was no way that the other dragon could have smelled him with all the rain washing over everything. If anything, the Nadder supposed, he might have not been careful enough to stay out of the Night Fury's radar. _Or the kid is begging to whore himself out to Toothless again._

Fortunately, this gave him enough time to rethink his strategy. It might not be the wisest idea to take out the Dark-Hunter and his mate all on his own. Even as an adolescent Toothless was able to defeat an elder Monstrous Nightmare with ease, and the famed dragon trainer was able to subdue Volundr bare handed. He may not have to worry about Hiccup's reincarnation, but his fellow dragon had a thousand years to grow stronger, much stronger than even he.

Yes, he would have to enlist in some help, but who? Arcadian and Katagarian Were-Hunters alike regarded the two as legendary tragic lovers, and although Were-Hunters and Dark-Hunters weren't exactly known for being friendly towards each other, no one would want to be responsible for separating the two again. He would have to find some people that hated Toothless as much as he did.

There was only one group of people he could think of: the Daimons.

To ask for their aid would be difficult enough. Daimons particularly liked the taste of Were-Hunter soul, because it was usually much older than a regular human's and therefore would sustain the soul-sucker longer. It was an added bonus that the magic infused within the soul would be transferred to the Daimon as well. The only reason why Daimons didn't prey on Were-Hunters more often was because of an ancient familial loyalty.

Were-Hunters had been created because of the Apollite curse that fell upon a sorcerer king's two sons. Instead of letting his sons turn into Daimons to extend their pre-destined 27 years, he experimented with magically infusing Apollites with the most powerful creatures on earth. In the process he created two kinds of beings: Arcadians that were humans who could turn into animals, and Katagarians that were animals who could turn into humans. Because of the Fate's anger towards the two abominations, these two kinds of creatures were at war with each other, and they were both equally as unfriendly to the Dark-Hunters that hunted their Daimon "cousins".

That familial loyalty only went so far, however. Hunger always trumped over any sort of bond. He would just have to offer them something that was worth more than his own soul.

Volundr entered the downtown club where he was sure his soon-to-be-accomplices would be at. Sure enough, he saw three people that fit the exact description: blonde, tall, devastatingly beautiful and absolutely deadly.

He pretended to just be a normal, human patron. He drank a beer, flirted with a pretty girl and began to dance to what the DJ was playing; all while he made sure that his scent would trail over to where the Daimons were. After a few hours he exited the club, and walked down into the alley where he was sure they would follow him.

Sure enough, he felt himself being pushed against the nearest wall.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" The tallest Daimon sarcastically laughed, "We should consider ourselves lucky guys, a dragon decided to show up on our turf."

The lone female of the group stepped forward from the shadows, and smirked at the Nadder. "Decided that you wanted to be snack, did you?"

The last member of the group shook his head. "Boy, did you come to the wrong place at the wrong time." he said almost regretfully, "We haven't had some food in a while, and we were hoping someone like you would show up."

Volundr laughed, which surprised and irritated the Daimons. "Guys, guys, I came here to make a business proposal." he offered, "It's a pretty good deal, if I do say so myself, so I would appreciate it if you would at least listen to what I have to say."

The tallest one, which the dragon supposed was the leader, turned to his two subordinates, who gave him the approval. "Alright, we're listening."

Volundr stared hard at the hand that was still keeping him against the wall. The leader rolled his eyes before letting go of him, but not before making sure that his two lackeys were on either side of the Were-Hunter ensuring that there would be no escape.

The Katagarian finally made his proposal, "We have a common enemy. The local Dark-Hunter and his bitch have been a thorn in my side for far too long, and I need your help to take them out."

The leader glared at the Nadder. "What makes you think we're stupid enough to try to attack a Dark-Hunter?"

Volundr sighed, "I don't want you to attack the Dark-Hunter, I want to kidnap his human pet. With him in our clutches the Dark-Hunter would be at our mercy. I'll handle killing the Dark-Hunter, and you guys get to eat the human afterwards."

The female took her turn to speak, "You think that one human is worth us risking our necks?"

"This isn't just any human," the Nadder assured them, "This kid has a very old soul, as old as mine, and what's better is that he is full with invigorating anger and sadness from his previous life. Just a bonus to a dead hunter."

The leader again looked to the other two members of the group who nodded their approval of the idea. The leader looked back at the dragon and said, "What's the plan, boss?"

Volundr smirked.

* * *

Hiccup realized what they were beginning to do when his back met the soft, silk covered mattress. Even as the logical part of his brain started to work again, telling him that this was happening much too fast, he still couldn't get enough of Dreki's addictive kisses and the feel of his strong body resting against his. He shut down any negative thoughts that demanded that they stop the passionate affection before it was too late, and sank into the feeling of euphoria that his savior was creating for him.

Dreki did not have the luxury to lose himself in Hiccup's embrace, however. He did not want to give the monster inside of him a chance to hurt his mate. He could not give into the animalistic instincts that told him to take and dominate with or without his partner's consent. So, he continued to kiss his beloved cautiously, trying to close off his senses as much as he possibly could.

It was difficult since the scent of Hiccup's pheromones were calling to him, and the way the boy's hips pushed against his was just positively evil.

So evil, in fact, that the dragon was forced to pull himself away from his lover and growl, "Stop that."

"I-I'm sorry," Hiccup whispered, slightly startled by the force of Dreki's tone.

The dragon immediately regretted frightening his mate, and apologized softly. "It's just -" Dreki chuckled nervously, "If you keep grinding against me I might take things too far."

There was a moment of silence between them before Hiccup's expression turned mischievous. "What if I want that?" he asked darkly.

The Dark-Hunter was shocked. He didn't think that Hiccup would have enough trust in him to take their relationship to the next level so quickly. Everything was falling into place so perfectly and so fast that he had to wonder if he was dreaming, or if his mate was forcing himself to do this to prove his courage or commitment.

"Hiccup," Dreki began tenderly, "we don't have to do this if you don't want to."

The student blushed lightly at the thought of what he was about to say. "But, I want to."

Dreki looked deeply into Hiccup's sincere visage. Once he was satisfied that he was telling the truth, that this was something he was willing to do with no ulterior motives behind it, the Katagarian whispered sensually, "What is it that you want, Hiccup? I need to know how far you want to go."

Hiccup's lips formed an amused smile. "Do you have a condom?" he giggled immaturely.

Dreki hung his head in despair. In his assumption that Hiccup wouldn't be ready to have sex with him so soon, he had not thought of buying protection, even if neither would need it. Were-Hunters were immune to most human diseases, but even if they weren't, Hiccup was his first and only partner. But, that was something that he couldn't quite explain to him yet. The student was rightfully wary of having a sexual encounter with him, at least without some precaution.

The dragon could hear his beloved laugh lightly. He lifted his head to see Hiccup greatly amused by the situation. Dreki cocked his head to the side and quirked an eyebrow in confusion. The student tried to stifle his laughter long enough to explain himself. "I'm sorry, it's just that you look so cute disappointed."

"I'm glad my utter devastation is entertaining to you." Dreki said with as much sarcasm as he could muster.

Hiccup smirked. "I never said that it was necessarily a deal breaker."

The Katagarian was immediately intrigued. "What do you mean?"

The student's eyes softened slightly, and a playful smile made its way to his lips. "I mean, if you promise me that I can trust you than I'll still be willing to - you know."

Dreki's eyes widened in astonishment. "Hiccup, wow, that's - I don't know what to say. You really have that much faith in me?"

The teen nodded. "I don't know what it is about you, but even though we haven't been together for long, I know that you would never put me in harm's way."

The Dark-Hunter was filled with so much joy that he nearly crushed his mate in a sudden embrace. Hiccup wrapped his arms tightly around Dreki's back, and enjoyed the incredible feel of his savior being so close to him. After a few moments the dragon pulled away from his lover's arms, so he was able to look deeply into his eyes. He basked in the love and desire found within those green orbs, before he dipped down and pressed his lips against the other's.

Dreki was in paradise. Not only did he officially have Hiccup's love and affection back, but he was also granted the boy's divine mouth. Feeling possessive of such lovely lips, he growled into the deepening kiss, as if daring the rest of the world to try to take what was rightfully his. This served to further turn on the desperate teen, who moaned in response to his growing desire.

The Katagarian couldn't think of a more beautiful sound, and he craved to hear it again. Satiated with his desire for Hiccup's lips, he began to nip at his sensitive neck in the hopes to hear that sweet music again. His efforts were rewarded, and then some, with the teen threading his fingers in his dark hair and softly moaning his name.

Dreki felt a swell of pride knowing that he was able to pleasure his beloved with simple nips and kisses. Further inflating his ego, he softly bit at a sensitive spot at the base of Hiccup's throat, causing him to cry out. Dreki smirked against his skin before he continued the journey down the teen's neck, until his sweatshirt blocked the way to more flesh. _Clothing, how I hate you so._

If Hiccup had known Dreki's secret, than the dragon would have been able to magically flash them out of their clothing, making it much easier for the two to get to their goal. For that night, however, he would have to strip them of their clothes like a normal human.

The dragon lifted himself off of Hiccup before he pulled his beloved's sweatshirt halfway off. The student sat up to help remove the rest of the offending article of clothing. He couldn't get it off fast enough; he wanted to feel Dreki claim him with his lips, and mark him with his teeth once again.

Beneath the hoodie was a navy blue t-shirt with a Viking flag imprinted on the corner of it. Dreki couldn't suppress his smile. "If it weren't for that shirt hiding your skin, I would love it."

The hormonally-charged teen completely ignored his statement, pulled him back down on top of him by his sweater, and kissed him with an unexpected force. A heartbeat later, the youth pulled at the Dark-Hunter's turtleneck, desperate to rid him of it, so he would finally be able to run his fingers over the beautiful skin beneath it. Dreki fully received the message: Hiccup wanted to get down to business, and he was more than happy to oblige.

The Katagarian broke away from his beloved only to pull off his turtleneck and throw it to an unknown corner of the room. He leaned back down onto Hiccup to continue kissing, nipping and biting at the sensitive areas of his neck and upper chest.

Hiccup moaned from how good Dreki's lips felt on his skin. He closed his eyes, and tilted his head to offer more of his neck to his soon-to-be-lover. As the dragon was busy with marking him with numerous love bites, getting him unbelievably worked up, Hiccup was busy with trailing his hands down his muscled arms. The feel of how truly powerful his savior was made him shutter with both fear and longing.

The power, the growls, the bites and the animalistic want in his eyes made him seem almost feral. Something about having such a beast in bed with him awakened a hunger that he had never known.

He needed to have him, and now.

"Dreki, please." Hiccup whimpered before he canted his hips to meet his rescuer's.

Dreki smiled mischievously against the crook of Hiccup's neck. He loved the way the boy begged for him, but he wasn't going to be cruel. He would give him exactly what he wanted, what he _needed_, but not before getting him nice and ready.

"Be patient, Love, the fun hasn't even started." Dreki whispered softly in Hiccup's ear as he slowly pushed his partner's shirt up with his thumb, using the rest of his fingers to caress the silk that was the flesh of his sides. The teen gasped from the wonderful sensation, much to his rescuer's satisfaction. With his mate's cooperation, he was able to lift the shirt off of him and throw it on the increasing pile of clothes.

The Katagarian left a trail of kisses from Hiccup's neck, down to the newly exposed flesh of his chest and stomach. He paid special attention to the areas that he knew drove his partner crazy, making him squirm and moan beneath him. Dreki took great pleasure in each movement and sound, evident by the way his own body responded. It became increasingly difficult to take things slow, but his determination to make their union special trumped his instinctual need to mate.

The boy gasped in anticipation when he felt his lover's lips and hands travel dangerously close to the top of his jeans. Dreki unbuttoned Hiccup's jeans, and slowly pulled down the zipper, while making sure to apply just enough pressure over the front of his pants to tease his erection. The student bucked into his savior's hand, and a soft mewl fell from his lips. A fresh wave of pheromones hit the dragon's nose. _Okay, I think there has been enough teasing for one night._

The Dark-Hunter hooked his fingers in the waistband of his mate's jeans, and pulled until there was resistance. Hiccup lifted his hips to allow his pants to be tugged down past his hips and thighs, finally freeing his slightly painful erection.

Hiccup stopped a sigh of relief from escaping before he took note that Dreki was staring at his exposed manhood in what he assumed was surprise that he wasn't wearing any underwear. "I didn't have any clean boxers." Hiccup explained sheepishly.

Dreki's dark, lust-filled gaze traveled from Hiccup's cock to his eyes. "Good," he said huskily, "just makes it easier for me."

A heartbeat after he spoke, Dreki's fingertips gently met the underside of Hiccup's hardened prick. The student threw his head back and groaned. No other hand, besides his own, had given him such an intimate touch until then, and it felt so good. He couldn't help but to grind against his savior's fingers, wanting more of his incredible caresses .

Dreki didn't want to deprive his beloved of anymore pleasure, so he obliged his indirect request by taking a firm hold of his Love's erection. Hiccup rewarded the dragon with a small cry, and the sound made his own cock twitch.

He stroked his beloved slowly, taking his time to appreciate the feel of the flesh in his hands and the beauty of its owner's reactions. Hiccup's small mewls and cries drove him nearly insane with yearning. The more vocal he became, the more the Dark-Hunter was inclined to repeat his motions faster and faster. It wasn't until he was sure that he had pushed his alluring human to the brink that Dreki was forced to let go of him. He didn't want the fun to end too early.

"Dreki!" Hiccup whined after the loss of the amazing tightness around him.

"Oh Love," Dreki chuckled softly before sitting up between Hiccup's legs, "I have something much better in store for you."

The dragon shifted until he was able to hop off the bed. Dreki turned around toward Hiccup, a playful smile on his lips, and began to unbutton his jeans. The scene before him made the teen all the more excited, and the slightest bit fearful. Seeing his lover finally tugging off his pants and underwear, revealing how well endowed he was, brought the young student back to reality. He was actually going to lose his virginity to someone who he barely knew, yet was madly in love with. There was no turning back. _This is really happening. _

Sensing Hiccup's sudden anxiety, Dreki climbed on top of the bed, and crawled over his mate. He used one hand to give a comforting caress to his cheek while he whispered softly, "What's wrong, Love?"

Hiccup looked away from his savior's eyes before shyly whispering, "I just can't believe this is really happening."

"We can always stop if you want."

Hiccup's eyes filled with panic at the very idea. His gaze was brought back to Dreki's dark eyes, and his hand immediately met the one on his cheek. "No!" he almost shouted, and in a much more calm tone he added "No, I want this. I'm just a bit nervous."

Dreki smiled softly, his eyes filled with care and devotion for the boy. "I promise that you will find no need to be nervous; I would never hurt you, Hiccup."

His words were like a spell cast on the student. Immediately, his anxiety melted away, and was replaced with something akin to desire, but was so much stronger. This wasn't a want, it was a need. Hiccup felt that if he did not experience a union with the man above him soon than he would die right there in his arms. Without any thought to his words, he said quietly yet clearly, "I can't wait anymore."

The Dark-Hunter gave the boy a single nod while secretly using his magic to transport a bottle of lubricant from his room to the drawer next to Hiccup, an effort taken so that he would not have to part from his lover. "You wont have to." Dreki leaned in to give his mate a quick kiss. "Can you hand me the bottle in the drawer?"

The boy nodded before reaching over to the drawer and retrieving the object the dragon had asked for. Once it was in his hands, he adjusted his glasses so he was able to read the label on the bottle. He raised a single eyebrow.

Dreki rolled his eyes and sighed, "A man does get lonely, you know." He made a suggestive motion with his hands.

Hiccup snorted, "Yeah, but do you really need to buy this stuff to get off? Seems kind of inconvenient when things need to be taken care of."

The dragon snatched the bottle from his mate's hands. "Of course a kid would think so. Real men know about patience and anticipation."

Hiccup laughed, "When did masturbation turn romantic all of the sudden, old man?"

Dreki chuckled despite how the statement had hurt him. The statement wasn't meant to hurt his feelings, of course. Hiccup had no idea that it took him centuries to simply not weep at the thought of making love. When his instincts did eventually win over his sorrow, he didn't want to use his mate's memory as a means to an end; he could never disgrace him in that way. So, to the dragon, the process of masturbation was romantic, taking time with himself as he fantasized about how he would take time pleasuring his human mate.

"When you're an old man like me, you'll understand." the Dark-Hunter chuckled before giving his human companion a quick kiss on the nose.

Hiccup saw his savior's small gesture of affection as an opportunity to capture his oh-so kissable lips with his own. Dreki saw the boy's distraction as an opportunity to lift his legs over his shoulders, making it easier to gain access to his ultimate goal. It wasn't until the dragon pulled away from the kiss that Hiccup realized what was about to soon happen, and a fresh wave of anxiety washed over him and reached the dragon's nose.

It couldn't be helped. Dreki understood that there would be no convincing Hiccup that sex wasn't as scary or as painful as he thought it was until he experienced it for himself. He gave the student a soft command to relax as he opened the bottle of lubricant and coated his fingers and hardness with the substance. When he was sure that the teen was relaxed enough, he placed the tip of his index finger over his entrance. He gave another command to breathe before slowly breaching him.

Hiccup gasped at the strange sensation. It wasn't particularly painful, but it wasn't very pleasant either. It wasn't until Dreki pumped his finger in and out of him that it began to feel slightly enjoyable. When enjoyable started to turn into pleasurable, the Dark-Hunter added another finger.

The student quietly hissed at the feeling of pleasure being replaced by a slight, burning pain. Hiccup's body tensed tightly around its intruders, causing even more pain. Sensing his mate's discomfort, Dreki came up with a plan. "Hiccup, please look at me."

Hiccup's eyes immediately focused on Dreki's, and at that moment he felt his entire being relax, almost as if he was being hypnotized. What he wasn't aware of was that he actually was being hypnotized. Dragons had this ability for hunting purposes, but it also worked great in situations like these. What felt like mere seconds by Hiccup, was in reality a few minutes, plenty of time for his body to become adjusted and relaxed to the intrusion.

He blinked, letting Hiccup's mind go of his control. It took the boy a moment to realize that Dreki was thoroughly preparing him, and it wasn't painful. In fact, it felt extremely good.

Dreki was having Hiccup moan and mewl with his fingers, and his mate even cried out in pleasure when he added yet another finger. The dragon grinned when he realized that his human was actually rocking back against his fingers, craving to feel them deeper inside of him. That was when he knew that the boy was ready for him.

Dreki withdrew his fingers, and was amused by how the human beneath him whimpered at the loss. "Don't worry, my love," the Dark-Hunter reassured him as he positioned the head of his cock over his stretched hole, "I'll fill you with something much better." A heartbeat after he made his promise, he pushed forward.

Hiccup tossed his head back against the pillow as a cry filled with both pain and pleasure escaped his throat. Despite the obvious note of discomfort in his voice, the dragon still had to use all of his self control to only slowly push himself forward into his Love's wonderfully tight heat, rather than fill him completely with one thrust. Fully sheathed inside of his beloved, he still had to use the reserves of his self control to not move while Hiccup was still adjusting to his size.

"I-I'm sorry," Hiccup apologized with humor in his voice, "Just - it kind of hurts. I'll need a minute."

Dreki gave a comforting smile. "No need to apologize, take as much time as you need."

The teen returned the smile while trying to will his body to relax. He didn't want to keep his savior waiting for him, especially knowing how difficult it must have been to keep control. As strenuous as it was, however, he stayed completely still for Hiccup's benefit. He refused to feel any bliss if it meant that Hiccup would have to be in pain. Such a sacrifice spoke to his heart, and in turn, caused his body to finally acclimate to him.

Hiccup rocked his hips a bit into Dreki's before ordering him to move.

There was no need to tell the man twice. Dreki slowly, gently, rocked inside his young mate. Hiccup quietly moaned as he allowed his senses to be over taken by the foreign sensations his savior was causing. Such noises reassured the concerned Dark-Hunter, who then allowed himself to withdraw and push back in just the tiniest bit more. The more his human reacted positively, the more the dragon was inclined to increase the depth and pace of his thrusts.

Hiccup was on the verge of screams. Nothing had ever felt this wonderful, this _good. _There wasn't anything that could have been compared to how amazing it felt to be so full, so complete. At least not until Dreki almost pulled all the way out of him and then had thrust back in at just the right angle to hit a spot that made stars burst behind the boy's eyes.

"Toothless!" Hiccup screamed in Norse. The teen wasn't aware of what he had said, but Dreki was.

Any and all restraint he had completely dissolved at the call of his true name. He took hold of Hiccup's neglected erection as he increased his pace. He stroked the boy in time with his quick, hard thrusts, causing him to scream and clutch the sheets beneath his fingers. It only took another few well angled thrusts for Hiccup to reach his peak. Dreki was soon forced to follow, after the teen became impossibly tight around him.

The dragon used the last bit of his strength to keep himself from collapsing on top of his satiated mate. He withdrew from Hiccup, which caused the two to groan in unison, before rolling on to his back. He looked over at the teen, who also turned his head to look up at him. Dreki smiled before lifting his arm, giving Hiccup an invitation to cuddle against him, which he so gladly took.

After a few moments of cuddling, Dreki was aware that Hiccup had mumbled something. He lifted his head before making a questioning, "Hmm?"

Hiccup's eyes glanced up toward Dreki's before saying, "I was just saying how I can finally realize why people kill for this."

The dragon quirked an eyebrow, "What? Sex?"

Hiccup chuckled before shaking his head against Dreki's side. He snuggled further into the warmth that was his lover before softly whispering, "No. Love"

Before the teen was aware of what was going on, he was tackled on to his back and embraced nearly to dangerous breathlessness. Tears of joy spilled from the Dark-Hunter's eyes and onto the pillow beneath Hiccup's head.

* * *

**AN: **I can't promise that I'll update soon, but I will try.


	8. Chapter 7

**AN: **Sorry for the long wait T_T I'm so busy its ridiculous, but thanks to the support of my friends I was able to get this done without thinking about giving up =D This is a pretty short chapter, but I plan on updating much more quickly.

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When Hiccup first awoke, had no idea where he was; memories of the previous night were still trapped in the fog left behind by his sleep. In a moment of sheer panic, he looked all around the unfamiliar room, trying to find a clue as to where he was, but it wasn't until his lover shifted on the bed beside him that everything started to come back. He was in a mansion in the Carmel Valley with the person who had taken his virginity hours ago. A small smile of relief and joy made its way to his face.

As he was about to rest his head back onto Dreki's shoulder in an effort to go back to sleep, his stomach reminded him rather loudly that it was food time. The student learned not too long ago, after a rather embarrassing incident involving him fainting, that when his stomach demanded for something it would not be denied.

The boy contemplated waking Dreki to ask him where the kitchen was, and if he was allowed to have any of his food, but thought better of it. His lover was dead to the world, and after an exhausting night like they had, he would need his sleep. He figured that the mansion must have a kitchen somewhere, and if it was a problem he would just buy him more food later.

Hiccup shifted ever so gently off the bed, as to not wake his rescuer, and tip-toed around the room to find his clothing. In the darkness he could only find his jeans, which he thought were suitable enough to wear if he was just going to scavenge the house for some food. He quickly put on his pants before resuming his tip-toeing over to the door.

His hand had reached out to try to find the doorknob in the dim light, before the door was suddenly flung open by an unknown person. In his effort to try to avoid being hit by the rouge door, Hiccup jumped back, successfully moving his body out of the way of the runaway wood, but failed in not tripping on the ends of his jeans. The moment his bottom hit the floor, an intense pain ran up his spine.

"Fuck!" Hiccup screamed in pain, "God, my ass."

Dreki, hearing his mate's cry of distress, shot up out of bed to run to Hiccup's side. When he reached the boy, he put a comforting arm around his bare shoulders. "Hiccup, are you alright?"

"Is his name really Hiccup?" a feminine voice asked from the direction of the doorway.

"Damnit Andrea!" Dreki growled in frustration, "How many times have I told you to not slam the door open like that?"

"Well, I-I," Andrea stuttered, "I-It's the only way I can possibly wake you up, and I didn't think that anyone would be in here with you."

The dragon decided to ignore her defiance, so that he was better able to assess how his human was feeling. He repeated his earlier question to which Hiccup nodded in response. "Yeah, but my ass fucking hurts, and I think my hand must have landed on something, because it feels like it's on fire."

Once the words left Hiccup's mouth, his own hand began to experience an intense, burning pain. It was a pain he had recognized from his past; both men were being marked as mates. Although it should not have been a surprise to Dreki, he was still caught off guard as to what to do. He wasn't sure how he would be able to explain how they both ended up with the same mark at the same time without telling him the brutal truth, and he didn't know if the boy could handle that quite yet.

The awkward silence was broken by Hiccup's stomach growling angrily once more. "Would you like me to get you guys something to eat?" Andrea asked while also trying to stifle a giggle.

"What time is it?" Dreki asked with a much politer tone than he used with Andrea moments ago.

"It's about four in the afternoon."

"Cool, because I'm thinking _Denny's._"

* * *

"I can't believe I slept literally all day." Hiccup said before he took a bite out of the breakfast Andrea had picked up for them.

It was later revealed to the boy that she was Dreki's personal assistant, which relieved him of his paranoia that she had been a crazy former or current girlfriend. _Man Hiccup, you need to stop watching Lifetime movies. _

"This is pretty normal for me," Dreki explained while using his fork to try to pick up a piece of egg, "I work nights, so this is actually early morning for me."

Hiccup nodded in acknowledgment as he continued to watch the news on an enormous television in the equally enormous living room they had settled themselves in. He tried his best to distract himself from the intricate mark that was on his hand, but after a few moments his thoughts would once again settle on his palm. Dreki had told him that it might have been a design on the flooring beneath, which was the only explanation that could be plausible, but there was something about the mark that didn't seem quite right to him. It was almost as if he had seen it somewhere before.

* * *

The next few hours after their breakfast that evening were spent watching movies, playing video games and taking a rather relaxing shower together. Dreki had offered to let Hiccup stay that night, but the student kindly declined; he didn't want to distract his rescuer from his work, or himself from his homework.

Disappointed, and a bit worried, he gave Hiccup a ride back to his dorm. He wanted to spend more time with him, after so many centuries apart it was hard to let him leave his side again, but more than that he didn't know if what had followed them the night before was still after them. The Dark-Hunter decided that he would just do some extra patrolling around the dorms that night.

Once they arrived at the parking lot of Hiccup's building, Dreki felt like weeping. He never wanted to say another "bye" to his mate, but he knew he would have to. The memories of the last time they had said "good-bye" sent a lump straight to his throat and tears in his eyes.

He gripped the steering wheel while trying to compose himself before he spoke. He didn't need Hiccup to wonder why he sounded like he wanted to drive off a cliff. "You still have my number, right?"

Hiccup chuckled at the absurdity of the question. "Of course I do!"

Dreki smiled; he loved the way the boy sounded when he laughed. "Call me first thing in the morning. I want to start making plans for our next date, okay?"

The student returned the bright smile before nodding. "Will do."

Hiccup reached out to pull the handle on the car door, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He looked back at his lover with a questioning expression before he was unexpectedly kissed. After a few moments of softly kissing, Dreki pulled away from his mate so that he was able to tenderly say, "I love you."

Dreki's confession caused Hiccup's heart to beat so fast that he was afraid that it would stop at any moment. For a few agonizing seconds he thought that maybe he was dreaming, but when his fingertips caressed the silky flesh of his rescuer's cheek, he knew it was real. Someone loved him. Someone _loved _him.

Hiccup replied without thought to his words, but instead they came from his heart. "I love you, too."

* * *

Hiccup felt as if he was soaring. With a happy hum, he opened the door to his dorm and nearly danced inside. Even the sight of his roommate using _his_ TV to play _his _console didn't bother him. He was just too happy for anything to be remotely wrong.

"I see your date went well." His roommate said without taking his eyes off the screen.

Hiccup jumped and fell back on his bed, his arms and legs spread wide. "Better than well."

"Seeing as how you didn't come back last night, I can infer that you finally got your bony ass laid."

The boy sat up and threw the nearest object to him, which so happened to be a pillow, at the curly haired head of his roommate. Although the action was meant to be playful, he still felt slightly offended at the word "laid". He didn't get "laid", they made love.

The roommate laughed before pausing his game, and throwing the object back at Hiccup. "Dude, it was a compliment."

Hiccup gave a false glare and sighed. "You know nothing of romance."

"Romance?" his roommate scoffed, "Dude, its college."

Hiccup got off the bed after sighing in disappointment. Wishing to not be in the presence of his ignorant roommate, he walked over to his desk, but he didn't feel like sitting and idly browsing the internet. No, he had way too much energy to merely sit around. He grabbed his iPod from the charger, and headed out the door to take a nice walk outside.

The student actually enjoyed the pleasant breeze he felt once he left the lobby. He turned to his right and walked up the sidewalk towards the Library. His thoughts turned to his lover, and how he had first met Dreki. A smile made its way to his lips as he looked for a romantic song to play on his iPod.

* * *

"Poor kid." Adonis said under his breath, but he had failed in keeping quiet enough to not aggravate his partners if their frustrated sighs had any indication.

"You know," Kynthia growled, "You didn't have to go Daimon if you couldn't stomach the action."

"Better him than me." Adonis smiled exposing his fangs that gleamed brilliantly in the moonlight.

"That's what I like to hear." Orestes laughed while patting his subordinate on the back. "But, we aren't here for a snack. You heard what the dragon said, he wants him alive and breathing." He, along with the other two Daimons, looked over the roof of the dorm building that the kid they were hunting just left out of. Luckily for them, he was heading out toward the library, whose path was aligned with plenty of dark places to hide in. They would just have to wait for the perfect moment to strike. "Kynthia, you have a friend who hunts here. You know of any good spots between here and where he's going."

"I do, as a matter of fact." the female Daimon smirked. "Between the two dorm buildings across from the library there's a little hiding spot where kids smoke pot and party during the weekend, but its completely isolated before midnight when the cops are still around."

"How do you know we won't be caught by these cops?" Adonis asked with the tiniest hint of worry.

Kynthia's smirk became an outright grin, "Because we're smarter than they are."

"Sounds like a plan." Orestes agreed, "Adonis, Kynthia, you two go around the buildings and wait at that spot. I'll follow the kid to make sure he finds that little detour." Before either of the Daimons had time to argue, their leader jumped from the roof to sidewalk and quickly made his way to the kid.

Adonis and Kynthia looked at one another before they followed their leader's wishes.

* * *

Orestes thanked the gods that the kid was oblivious, not that he needed the extra help, it just made life a hell of a lot easier. The kid was so caught up in what ever fantasy world he ended up in, that the Daimon was able to be at arms length without him noticing. It didn't help the student's cause that he was also listening to music at such a high volume. It almost made him feel bad. Almost.

When the two finally worked their way near the buildings Kynthia had spoken of, Orestes grabbed the hood of the boy's sweatshirt and dragged him to the meeting point. The boy was so caught up in his daydreams that it took him a moment to gasp and struggle, but by then it was too late. He threw the kid against the wall, pulled out his headphones and motioned for his minions to surround him.

The feeling of intense déjà vu did not escape Hiccup, but this time he wasn't going to be a willing participant. He ran, squeezing between the leader and his female lackey, and headed toward to dorm building's parking lot. He had a hope of making it to safety, but it was crushed when the leader seemed to appear right before him.

He gasped in shock. He wasn't the fastest runner by any stretch of the imagination, but he hadn't even seen the leader's movement. No one could be that fast, not unless they were not human.

Hiccup didn't have time to dwell on it any longer as panic seize his being. He shouted, "Help! Dreki! Help me!" He hoped beyond all hope that somehow his savior could hear him, but his shouting did nothing but bring amusement to his soon-to-be captor.

"Your Dark-Hunter friend can't help you now." a feminine voice said from behind him before he felt two hands grip his arms tightly. He looked to his sides to find that the other two captors had seized him as confusion made its way to his features, and it was not lost on the man in front of him.

The leader leaned so closely that Hiccup could feel his breath on his lips. "Hmm, it seems that Dreki hasn't told you much about himself? There's much to teach you about our world, before you die." He straightened his body out before giving the order to knock him out. At the order, Hiccup's world suddenly turned black.

* * *

Dreki never felt satisfied after a hunt no matter how many Daimons he took out. He contemplated this fact as he killed yet another Daimon stupid enough to be in his presence. He assumed that the reason for this lack of accomplishment would be that it was much too easy. Even when they grouped together, which was cowardly if you asked the dragon, they were still no match for him. Oh, how he longed for a real hunt.

Just as he wished for some action, he heard someone screaming for help. It didn't take long for Dreki to realize that who ever was calling for help was shouting his name, and it took just a moment longer for the dragon to recognize that it was Hiccup's voice. Without hesitation, he ran towards the scream.

By the time he reached where he knew Hiccup's voice was coming from, it was too late. He was gone. Dreki growled in frustration before he began to use his extraordinary sense of smell to try to pinpoint where they took him. It was easy to make out the putrid stench of Daimon, and by how it led to the parking lot and down the street he could only assume they left by car.

There was no time to head to his own vehicle. He didn't smell blood, so he knew Hiccup must still be alive, but he didn't know for how long. He sniffed around, and after he was satisfied that no one was around to see him, he shifted to his natural form. He took to the sky, and followed his nose to where his mate would be.

* * *

Hiccup awoke to find himself in what appeared to be some sort of abandoned warehouse. His foggy mind found the humor in the cliché he was currently in, and was too preoccupied with that thought to have any fear. Instead, he snorted.

"I see you're awake." a voice said from in front of him.

Hiccup looked up toward where the voice came from, and found himself staring at a very strange, and yet attractive, looking man. His hair was not very long, but even so it was clear to see that its color was a mixture of blonde, auburn and brown that was too beautiful to be real. His features where much like Dreki's, sharp and masculine, giving him a very rugged look about him. His eyes were the strangest of all. He had never seen a person with such bright green eyes before, and they were so much like a reptile's that they had to be contacts. He could never compare to his Dreki, but he was close, who ever the hell he was.

"Hello, Hiccup." the man greeted in the language of his dreams.

The fear that Hiccup had alluded finally caught up to him.

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**AN: **Reviews are welcome =)


	9. Chapter 8

**A/N: Sorry for not updating in...well, forever. Anyone who has kept up with my DA knows that I've had a lot of personal problems lately. Now that school is out, I'm actually able to concentrate on writing, and I actually wrote this entire update in about a day. My writing skills have gotten a little rusty, and of course the chapter is quite short. I am sorry if the length disappoints anyone out there, but I would have kept it this length, overdue update or not. I'm not the kind of author that believes in writing extra long, overdrawn out chapters merely because they have not updated in a while. I keep my chapters the length I do, because that is where I feel it ends the best. So please, don't comment or review saying that I should have made the chapter longer. That being said, because I made this chapter so short, the next update will come a lot faster than three months. Expect an update in about a week or so. Hope to see you then!**

* * *

_There's no way…_Hiccup's fear only grew from his confusion. How did this man know the language spoken in his dreams? How did he come to know his name? What was happening? Why was he here, bound to a chair in an abandoned warehouse? Nothing in his world made any sense.

The man smiled wickedly; it was evident that he took pleasure in Hiccup's alarm. The boy could feel the satisfaction and the intense hatred that came off of the man as if the emotions were ocean waves crashing against his body and knocking him down. In the back of his mind he wondered what he had done to this man to make him feel so intensely.

"So it seems that you could understand me," the man spoke confidently in English, "good. That means some of your memories seem to be coming back."

"W-what memories?" Hiccup managed to ask, despite the panic that nearly paralyzed him; his need for answers trumped the anxiety that he was trying so desperately to fight off.

The man chuckled before ruffling Hiccup's hair with mock affection. "Aren't you adorable? You know, I always did think you were cute for a human."

_The combination of the unwarranted touch and the strange words completely terrified him. God, please don't let this be something out of_ Special Victims Unit.

The man's eyes seemed to take a far off look to them, as if he were remembering something pleasant. He looked back at the teen as the smirk on his face turned much more sinister. He took a step toward Hiccup before leaning in so close, his lips were only a breath away from the teen's ear. "You know, if I hadn't been mated I would have taken you myself," the man said as he stroked Hiccup's cheek lightly with his fingertip, "You were always such a pretty, delicate, little thing, and I also heard from Toothless that you were a great fuck."

"Toothless?" Hiccup tested the name on his tongue. He recognized it as much as he recognized any other name that was introduced to him, but he could place neither a figure or a face.

His captor leaned away from the boy before giving him a disappointed stare. "Ah, what a shame. It seems as if you don't remember your long lost lover. Don't worry, you'll get to meet him soon."

Hiccup didn't wait long for the prophecy to come true, because the moment the man's words spilled from his lips, a terribly loud thudding noise came from the metal doors in front of Hiccup. The piercing sound echoed sharply off the walls of the building they had secluded themselves in, the evidence of the force that was being placed upon the barrier. The deafening booming continued until the dented metal door was forced to fall away from it's hinges and crash onto the floor. In the newly opened entrance stood a rather angry looking Dreki.

"Dreki!" Hiccup shouted with relief and happiness. In an instant, all his hope came alive within him; his world was about to be set back in place.

The man turned from Hiccup; the confidence on his face did not falter. "Ah, Toothless!" he greeted as though the two had been friends for years, "So glad for you to come and join us. I hope you know I kept Hiccup nice and comfortable."

Dreki's only response was to run toward the strange man, but before he was able to reach his new foe, the Daimons dropped gracefully from the ceiling in front of the dragon. The Dark-Hunter reacted as though it were any other barrier between he and his love, he fought to destroy it.

A dagger shot from his sleeve and into his hand. There wasn't a moment for the dagger to be acquainted properly to his palm, for it was plunged deeply into the leader's chest before any eye was able to see the action. Just as the leader's body dissolved into a shower of golden dust, Dreki dropped to his knees to catch his weapon as the other two Daimons tried to reach for his neck.

The dragon looked up at the female, who was bent forward in an effort to reach him, and stabbed his dagger deep within her chest. Like the Daimon before her, she too dusted beautifully. In the distraction, the third Daimon was actually able to grab Dreki's arm and sink his fangs into it, causing the Dark-Hunter to shout in pain, but the pain was only a momentary annoyance.

The dragon pushed up on his knees to fall back onto the ground, successfully bringing the attached Daimon with him. He elbowed the creature square in the chest, knocking the wind out of him. As the Daimon tried to recover from the blow, Dreki swung himself on top of him and stabbed him. He lifted himself up from the Daimon just as he dusted.

The entire scene played out in front of Hiccup, but the boy couldn't believe what he had just seen. His boyfriend had just killed three people, or were they even people? They dusted like they were vampires, but they weren't real, were they?

"I knew those Daimons were going to be useless." The man mumbled just loud enough for Hiccup to hear.

_Daimons?_

Dreki approached the man slowly, calculating, his entire body tense like a predator that was stalking prey. His eyes held a murderous look that sent a chill down even the college student's spine. Hiccup knew full well that if given the opportunity, his savior would repeat his earlier performance with the strange man playing his doomed costar.

Suddenly, Hiccup's savior stopped, the look in his eye was even angrier than before. The stranger chuckled lightly before warning, "Oh no, not yet. I want you to listen to what I have to say first."

The teen didn't know what had prevented Dreki from reaching him, until he felt the cold metal of a blade pressed against his throat. The hope he had felt for what seemed like mere moments dissipated, and was replaced with a terror that he had yet to feel. His death had never felt closer.

"Make your last words quickly." Dreki warned coldly.

The man merely laughed in response. "I guess you could say these will be my last words to you, Toothless."

Dreki shook with the rage that was quickly consuming him. No one had called him that for centuries, and there was only one person who he would allow to refer to him by such a name. "Who are you?" he barked

"Don't you remember?" the man spoke with false hurt, "What a shame. We used to be brothers, you and I. We fought the humans back when we were strong in numbers. Back before you had our kind nearly wiped out."

The college student took in every nonsensical word. He tried to think, to process, to react to what his captor was saying, but he couldn't. It nearly made him want to scream in frustration. "Your kind?" Hiccup almost sobbed, "What does he mean Dreki?"

The stranger growled dangerously. "You will be silent!" he commanded before slapping the boy so hard it almost knocked the chair he was tied to over.

The Dark-Hunter snapped. He took his enemy's distraction as an opportunity to tackle him down to the ground. They fought each other fiercely. The man tried to stab Dreki several times, but each time he was able to dodge the blow, and land one of his own. After a few minutes of struggling, the man finally abandoned the knife and used all of his strength to push the Dark-Hunter away from him.

There was a sudden calm once the two men were separated, but only for a moment. The stranger laughed maniacally before he stood slowly. Suddenly, it felt as if all the energy and tension in the warehouse settled around the man in a bubble. In a split second, a beautiful dragon replaced the stranger that kidnapped Hiccup.

Its scales were a wonderful combination of blue and sea green that shone brightly against the lights illuminating the warehouse. Spikes littered the dragon's body, but were much more prevalent near its head and tail. Its wings were primarily golden in color with speckles of aquamarine thrown about, as if an artist had tossed drops of paint on a shimmering canvas. The dragon looked more bird in nature than reptilian, however, that did not stop it from looking positively elegant

If that were not shocking enough for the college student, when the dragon began to charge Dreki, the Dark-Hunter merely backed away calmly before transforming himself into a midnight blue dragon who looked just as majestic as its partner, if not more so. This dragon was much more sleek and slender, a body made for agility and stamina. He was considerably smaller, but his sharp claws and intelligent eyes made it obvious that he was fiercer. His wings were massive compared to his body size, a sign that this dragon was made to be in the air.

It was something out of Hiccup's most wonderful fantasies and most terrifying nightmares. He recognized the species of the two dragons, a Deadly Nadder and a Night Fury. These two animals that he previously thought did not exist were snarling and growling at one another right in front of him. It couldn't be real, and yet it was. Am I dreaming?

Before Hiccup could dwell much longer on the thought, the Night Fury snarled and launched himself at the Deadly Nadder. The Nadder was not fazed, and met the Night Fury's chest with his head, successfully knocking the dragon down on the ground. The black dragon merely shook his head and stood from where he had fallen, but while he wasn't too injured, the momentary setback had cost him. The Nadder's spikes stood on end, an indication that the Nadder was about to throw poisoned darts at the Night Fury.

Hiccup's heart seized with terror. He knew exactly what was about to happen, and he could not allow it. He desperately pulled at his binds, and in one burst of newly found, adrenaline-fueled strength, he was able to free his hands. It took him only a heartbeat to free his feet, but it had already been too late. Just as the Night Fury was about to charge once more, several thick, poisoned darts entered his body.

"No!" Hiccup screamed as he ran toward the Deadly Nadder. Instinct took over his common sense, and he found himself reaching out to the Nadder. The aquamarine dragon was only able to glance at the boy briefly before Hiccup began to scratch him methodically near his neck and shoulder. The student had no idea what he was doing, or why he was even close enough to touch the dragon, but after a few more scratches the dragon was on the floor.

There was no time to process what had just occurred; Hiccup immediately went to the Night Fury's side to inspect the damage that was done. The Night Fury was on his side, but he was conscious. The college student glanced at the dragon's bleeding chest, and then back at his black eyes. The dragon nodded once, and the teen instinctually understood.

Hiccup took hold of the biggest spike and pulled it out as carefully as he could, trying not to cause even more damage to the injured Night Fury. Despite his best efforts, however, the Night Fury roared from the intense pain it caused. "I'm sorry." Hiccup whispered, trying to console the dragon as best he could.

_Hiccup, please just hurry!_

The boy gasped in surprise as he surveyed his surroundings in order to try to find the origin of the voice, but the dragon quickly snapped him back to the task at hand with a snort. Hiccup gave a single nod before he quickly began to pull the darts from the Night Fury's body, one by one. It was messy and bloody, and the threat of running out of time made the process much more painful, but just as the Nadder was recovering from Hiccup's touches, Toothless was able to stand and motion for the boy to get on to his back.

Hiccup did not argue with the silent command. He settled himself on the Night Fury as if he had done it a thousand times before. He was not given much warning before the dragon ran out the warehouse and flew straight into the night sky.

At first, the flying did not bother Hiccup. In fact, there had been an unexplained and sudden joy in the action. The pleasantness of flight was short lived, however. As soon as the college student was able to see the lights that lit up the bay, he was reminded that he had a phobia of heights. He clutched tightly onto the dragon's neck, and buried his face against the dragon's warm scales. He whimpered helplessly against the Night Fury as he wished for the night to just end.

_It's alright, my mate, we're out of there. All will be explained shortly._

"You know, Mr. Dragon, I wish that were my problem. But you see, I'm pretty much over being kidnapped, almost raped and killed." Hiccup mumbled against the dragon's neck sarcastically, "My problem right now is that I'm being flown by a dragon, without a secure harness, and I'm afraid of heights. This day couldn't get any better!"

The Night Fury made a noise that was somewhere between being a gasp and a roar. _You're afraid of heights?_

"You betchya!" Hiccup laughed and nearly sobbed simultaneously.

The night could not be any less pleasant for both human and Night Fury.


	10. Chapter 9

**AN: **Okay, tried to get this out sooner, but my creative writing has been blocked by home sickness :( I'm going back on Saturday, so my improved mood has inspired me to write this chapter. Wanted to get this out as quickly as possible, so its lacking some editing, which I will do some time later.

* * *

The flight from the warehouse in downtown Monterey to the Carmel Valley only took a few minutes, but for both human and dragon, it seemed like hours. Hiccup felt utterly helpless being so high in the sky without anything preventing him from falling, and he couldn't get down fast enough. Dreki was in so much pain that he began to feel faint. He knew he wouldn't die from his injuries; as a Dark-Hunter he could only die if his head was severed from his body, if he was caught too long in the sunlight or if someone stabbed him in the place Artemis had marked him. Dark-Hunters had to recover from their injuries by sleeping, however, and having to fight off that sleep only increased the pain Dreki was experiencing. It was only when the dragon clearly saw the roof of his home that he allowed himself to feel relieved.

He descended towards his mansion. The closer he was to the ground, the less stress he smelled coming off of his mate. He could also feel Hiccup's heartbeat begin to slow against him, and his hands loosen around his neck. While normally this would make him happy, the ebbing of Hiccup's alarm did nothing but remind the dragon about how wrong everything seemed to be. He was just attacked by a dragon that lived with him in Berk, Hiccup was afraid of flying, and he was going to a home that felt so big and empty. His entire world was upside down, and he didn't know how to right it.

Hiccup released a heavy breath once the Night Fury's paws landed on the cemented driveway. He still was too shaken to let go of the mighty beast, finding himself to be more secure on top of the dragon than to risk stepping onto the ground. It was only after the dragon lifted his shoulders a little, a subtle nudge of encouragement, that he lifted his leg to the other side of the Night Fury and pushed away from him. Hiccup didn't quite land on his feet, but rather on his knees. Yet, there was still a joy, and a sadness, to being on the ground in anyway.

Without the assistance of the instincts that demanded that he return Hiccup on the ground safely, Dreki was fully ready to collapse. He couldn't just yet. He had to find shelter from the approaching sunlight, and he knew that no one would be able to simply carry him inside. He used the last ounces of his strength to walk slowly toward the front door of his home.

As soon as the student noticed that his flying companion was moving, he stood and caught up beside him. Hiccup put a reassuring hand on top of the dragon's head, too much in shock to process what kind of danger that could potentially put him in. Even so, the dragon didn't seem to be very threatening. In fact, he had an aura about him that reflected comfort and safety. The boy felt more assured next to the dragon at that moment, than he had the entire night without his presence.

Dreki felt a sense of nostalgia being able to walk beside his mate, but he didn't have the energy to reflect upon the memory. His concentration was centered on getting inside, which seemed like a monumental task as his heavy paws slowly inched forward. Once the dragon and boy finally approached, Hiccup allowed himself to separate from the Night Fury in order to open the door, but to his dismay, it was locked.

The college student felt a nudging at his side. Hiccup understood it as a gentle command to step aside, so he quickly gave the dragon enough space to be able to briefly paw at the door. For a moment there was only silence, but it was then broken by a few clicks and the door creaking open.

Andrea stood at the doorway, an expression of shock painted her tired features. Before Hiccup could even think of trying to explain, the girl shouted in panic, "Dreki!"

The dragon growled quietly as he entered his home. He was only able to make it past the door, before his entire body collapsed onto the cold tile floor. Hiccup's body seemed to find the idea of collapsing, of either terror or relief, a good one, but Dreki's assistant caught him just before he was able to hit the ground.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Andrea strained to say as she struggled to help Hiccup to his feet, "Don't go fainting on me, alright?"

"How can you even say that?" Hiccup nearly shouted at the girl. "There's a freakin' dragon on the floor!"

Andrea bit at her bottom lip and looked off to the side in deep thought. She had no idea what to say, or what to do. The girl couldn't fathom trying to explain the underworld that Dreki lived in to the frightened teen. Their world was a dark and dangerous one, and she didn't want to drag the boy any deeper into it. Her life was constantly in danger, and she was only employed for a Dark-Hunter. A loved one? Daimons would use that to their ultimate advantage. It was why Artemis made the rule that no Dark-Hunter could have a relationship.

So, she didn't understand why Dreki allowed the student back into his life after he left his bed.

"I think that maybe you should wait until Dreki wakes up so he can explain everything to you." Andrea finally decided. The Dark-Hunter would be able to decide the best course of action.

The college student's body went completely rigid. His usually kind, soft features, hardened in what was obviously anger. His hands clenched into fists as he tried to contain his temper. "Why doesn't anyone want to tell me anything?" Hiccup finally shouted in sheer frustration. "My God! I have been kidnapped by vampires, threatened by a man who turns into a dragon, and just when I thought Dreki had come to the rescue, he turns into a dragon, too! Now no one wants to give me the courtesy of telling me what the hell happened?"

Before Andrea was able to retaliate, Dreki made a deep sound. Neither could tell whether it was a purr of relief, or a growl of protest. Andrea was not overly concerned, nor was she allowed to be. She knew better that to poke and prod a sleeping, _recovering_, dragon. Hiccup didn't seem to be so wise.

He kneeled beside the dragon, a look of worry was etched onto his face. Andrea opened her lips to warn the boy, but the astonishing scene that lay before her took the words straight from her mouth. The student slowly ran a hand along the dragon's cheek, just underneath the eye, but instead of the mighty beast growling, or even roaring at the boy, he leaned against the touch.

"He'll be okay, right?" Hiccup asked in a voice that was soft and filled with his love.

Andrea nodded, but she realized quickly that Hiccup was much too focused on the Night Fury to look at her. "Dreki will be fine after he sleeps for a bit. If you'd like, I can show you to a room for you to sleep, or have someone pi-"

"No," Hiccup interrupted Andrea harshly, "No, I'm going to stay here."

Andrea nodded in understanding. She could plainly see that behind Hiccup's eyes was a love so strong it defied logic. The assistant knew how the teen could have been easily lured. It was common knowledge among the people of the underworld that dragons were known to lure humans with their extreme beauty; it was a hunting trick used in ancient times, but in the modern age was just used to get laid. However, the student wasn't caught in a trap of lust. Hiccup's heart compelled him to stay by the side of a creature that could kill him without a second thought, just to know that he would be okay.

Frankly, she was impressed by the strength of his love and his courage. "I could bring you a blanket or a pillow so you can get comfortable." The girl offered kindly.

The exhausted teen nodded without taking his eyes off the Dark-Hunter. "That would be nice, thank you."

"I'll be right back."

* * *

It did not take long for Andrea to find a spare blanket and pillow for the poor college student, but by the time she returned, Hiccup was sleeping soundly, curled against the dragon's arm. It was the most relaxed and peaceful he had looked since he arrived that morning. She did not have the heart to wake him, so instead she placed the blanket gently over the boy and the pillow beside his head.

Andrea turned toward the staircase, unsure of what to do next. She debated whether or not to keep an eye on the sleeping pair, or to follow by example. She eventually came to the conclusion that if the dragon allowed the boy to be so near to him while he was injured, than the boy would be safe when the sleeping beast awoke.

She headed up the staircase and into her room without another thought.

* * *

_Victory; there was a sense of victory, but it was overshadowed by fear. Such fear, because now he was falling. Falling. Falling. Falling into the pit of fire._

* * *

Hiccup gasped after he was startled awake by his nightmare. He quickly calmed himself when he realized that he was not falling to his doom, but was rather lying safely on a comfortable bed with a warm blanket surrounding his body. The boy groaned as he rolled over onto his side in an attempt to find a more comfortable position. He was particularly agitated that the familiar nightmare was still able to startle him out of sleep after all the years he continued to have it.

As he tried to go back to sleep, he recalled the events of the previous night. It would make sense that he would have this nightmare, as it usually came to him after a particularly stressful day, or night in this instance. What didn't seem to make sense was how he ended up on the bed he was trying to sleep on. The last thing he remembered was -

"Dreki!" Hiccup shouted in panic; Dreki was injured, and it hadn't looked good. He quickly pushed himself up into a sitting position. Just as he pulled the blanket away from himself, the door facing the side of the bed opened, and a very wet and semi-naked Dark-Hunter stepped out.

Hiccup had to keep himself from drooling as his eyes followed a little drop of water that fell from his hair, down his chest and toward his treasure trail. Unfortunately, a white towel blocked the drop's path, and the college student's view.

A heartbeat after he sent a few mental curses at the towel around Dreki's waist, he realized that his rescuer had no evidence of any injury on his body. _Was it all a dream? _

"I wish I could honestly say it was." Dreki answered as he approached his mate.

The college student's eyes widened in surprise. "How did you-"

The Night Fury laughed heartily as he sat down at the edge of the bed. "After last night, are you really surprised that I can also read your mind?"

Hiccup turned his body so that he was able to sit next to his bizarre lover. "I guess you're right, but it seems kind of unfair that you can turn into a dragon, apparently heal quickly and be able to read my mind."

Dreki continued to smile despite the shadow of pain that veiled his eyes after Hiccup's remark. "Yes, well, much of that comes with a hefty price."

The college student felt a pang of guilt at seeing such hurt behind his lover's eyes. He did not know much of Dreki's past, but it was obvious that his comment poured salt on an old wound. "I'm sorry." Hiccup apologized softly.

The dragon put an arm around his mate's shoulder and pulled him close. "No need, my love. You didn't know."

Hiccup rested his head against Dreki's shoulder as he wrapped his arms around his chest and back. He hoped that the gesture would comfort him, even if only slightly. "I would like to."

The Night Fury sighed. He knew this day would come, the day where he would have to explain everything to his mate. He just didn't expect it to come so soon. Dreki had no idea where to even begin.

"If you don't want to-"

"No, no," Dreki interrupted, "There's just so much to say."

Hiccup nuzzled the dragon's shoulder. "Why don't you start with how you're able to turn into a dragon?"

"I actually don't turn into a dragon," Dreki began nervously, "I turn into a human. I am known as a Were-Hunter, and there are two types of Were-Hunters. The type I am is known as the Katagaria, or animals that can use their magical abilities to turn human once they hit puberty."

There was a short pause as Dreki tried to asses the boy's reaction to the new knowledge. He began to doubt that Hiccup would take all the information well, but he was proven wrong when he asked, "So what's the other type?"

Dreki gave a relived sigh before he continued. "The other kind are known as Arcadians, they are humans who can magically turn into animals when they hit puberty. The two kinds are at war with each other, because of a curse placed by us by the Fates."

"Is that why that man attacked you? Because he's the other kind?" Hiccup asked, his tone was both curious and horrified.

"No, no, we are both Katagaria, his deal with me is much different." Dreki said with a tone that implied the seriousness of their feud. "He holds me responsible for the death of his mate."

"Why would he think that?" Hiccup asked is if he were offended at the very notion. The college student could never think that someone who was willing to put himself through harm's way, could ever be capable of harming someone, at least unprovoked.

Dreki gulped before releasing a heavy breath. His eyes betrayed the guilt that he kept within his heart for more than a thousand years. "Because centuries ago I was mated to a human, and when his village found out, they nearly wiped out all the dragons that inhabited it."

Suddenly, images of fire, blood and destructed flashed in Hiccup's mind, like a memory of a bad dream he once had.

"And that human was you."


	11. Chapter 10

**AN: **Sorry for the late update, but I got it in. Anyway, the story is about to end soon! I look forward to the ending of this series so I can start on my next one. Enjoy!

* * *

For a moment, Hiccup wasn't able to fully process the information that was given to him. In fact, Dreki's words halted all progression of thought except for the word, "What?"

The dragon sighed with the weight of what he was about to admit. "I believe - no, I know that you are the reincarnation of my mate. I feel it in my heart and soul, with everything that I am."

The college student knew that his dragon wasn't lying, but he couldn't accept the truth either. It was impossible. The entire night before was impossible, but it happened and he was unable to deal with it. He just wanted to sleep and pretend that everything was some sort of hellish nightmare.

Frankly, with everything that had happened in his life thus far, it was unfair that his situation was anything more than a bad dream.

A hand on his shoulder finally startled Hiccup away from his chaotic thoughts. His eyes immediately tried to seek out the comforting gaze of his lover, but for a startling moment, the love behind the Dark-Hunter's eyes brought him neither the joy nor the safety he sought. Instead, he felt a deep, burning rage.

_His love for me was a lie. _It was that realization that broke him. This person didn't love Hiccup, he loved the idea that his mate had returned to him. If it hadn't been for the falsehood of his affection, than his life would have never been endanger, and he could have been blissfully unaware of the evil that plagued his world. Dreki dragged him across a line he could never go back from.

Hiccup wanted to shout, to hit, to run, but all he could do was choke out, "Why would you do this to me?"

Dreki was so very confused. He was expected a negative reaction, even no reaction, but he did not expect his mate to look so forlorn. He tried to wrap his arms around Hiccup in an effort to comfort him, but the boy jumped up away from him before he was able to reach.

The Dark-Hunter tried to open his mouth to speak, but Hiccup took the opportunity to speak first. "I want to go home, please."

"Hiccup -"

Hiccup stopped Dreki's plea with a single raised palm. The teen chewed his bottom lip to stop a sob that threatened to escape his throat. After a deep, calming breath, he was ready to speak. "Please, I just want to go home."

"We need to talk about this." Dreki said with as much calm and reason as he could behind it. Hiccup was a logical creature, and maybe his words could break through the emotions that were clouding the boy's judgment.

Hiccup's eyes darkened in anger. "There is nothing to talk about, Dreki." The student growled, "I understand completely now. You never loved me, I mean, how could you? You're a god and I'm just me. I'm just a replacement."

It was Dreki's turn to be angry. "I never said any of those things, you are putting words in my mouth."

"Maybe," Hiccup agreed, "But, it doesn't make it untrue. You just admitted to me that you dated me because you think I'm this other person."

"You are, you are my mate!" The dragon sighed with frustration. "I knew you wouldn't believe me."

Hiccup gave a nervous laugh. "Its because I believe you that I'm upset, you stupid reptile."

_You stupid reptile… _The words were so familiar to Dreki, even in a foreign language. He had focused on those wonderful words so much that it almost made him miss the rest of what his beloved had said. When he finally did focus on what Hiccup was actually saying, it only served to confuse him further. "Why are you upset, then?"

"Because," Hiccup sighed with a sadness that weighed down on his soul, "Because even if I was this ancient person, he is still long dead. I'm a different person, now. I have different hopes, different dreams, a different future. I am nothing like the person you loved before, and you don't even realize it."

Dreki didn't have anything to say. He couldn't think of anything to say. In a way, he supposed this Hiccup was right. He was different. Yet, he still loved him, differences or not. What mattered to him was Hiccup's spirit, and that would never change.

He wanted to say that, but knowing the boy, it wasn't something he wanted to hear at that moment. The only thing he could do was wait until he cooled down enough so he could talk some sense into him.

"I can't take you home yet, you're still in danger. I can give you you're space for now-"

"No, I don't want to stay here." Hiccup interrupted, "I don't want anymore of your false kindness."

Dreki's eyes had a look of deep sadness for a moment before they turned menacingly feral. "My kindness was never false, Hiccup. Even if what you claim is true, if my love for you is because of a falsehood, my feelings were still always genuine."

The teen let out a sigh of frustration, but was silent from then on. It wasn't difficult for Dreki to see that Hiccup was extremely unhappy, frightened almost, and that staying in his presence would continue to make him even more so. He wanted to respect his beloved's interests, but he didn't want him in danger either. He needed him to be safe, if not with him with someone he trusted.

_I can go to the one man who still owes me a favor. _Dreki grinned so widely at the idea of bugging his old friend again that even Hiccup took note. "What's got you so smiley?"

"Can it, smart ass, I'm about to fix both of our problems." Dreki snapped back, but in a more playful than malicious manor. The dragon sat up from the bed and approached the teen with open arms. Hiccup tried to duck and run from him, but Dreki was too fast and too frustrated with his trying to be difficult.

"Let go of me!" The student shouted defiantly as he struggled against the bigger man's hold.

"If you keep that up then you'll just get sicker." Dreki growled.

Hiccup stilled before asking, "What?"

The dragon did not waste his opportunity, and used his magic to teleport the two of them to an old neighborhood in New York city. Dreki was used to teleporting from one place to another, but Hiccup was not. As soon as the Dark-Hunter let go of his mate, he feel to his knees and dry heaved.

"What the hell?" Hiccup asked after he was sure that he would not vomit.

"Oh yeah," Dreki said in a tone the feigned realization, "I forgot to tell you, we were-hunters can do that too."

"Where are we?" the boy asked as he stood.

"We're in New York, but it doesn't look to be the right place." The Dark-Hunter said as he stepped toward to what used to be a shop called "The Arcana Cabana", but looked to be currently abandoned. He tried to open the door of the shop, but it was locked. He contemplated using wither his magic or might to open the door, but it would be useless. It was obvious that no one was inside.

Instead of becoming frustrated, Dreki became proactive. He had a feeling that if he tried smelling around, he would able to catch a scent of his Dark-Hunter friend. Even for someone who was as restless as he was, the old sorcerer was much to attached to this place to simply let it go to be forgotten. Sure enough, after sniffing the handle he caught a fresh trail.

He took the boy's wrist and pulled him along, ignoring the angry line of questioning going his way. He hailed a cab after walking a few blocks, and realizing that his human companion would probably not be able to handle the rest of the trip there. He gave the cabby instructions until they reached the front of an apartment complex near the local university. _Odd, I didn't know he was teaching again_. Then again, it had been a good few years since he had spoken to him.

He paid for their fare, and left the cab to go to the entrance of the complex. There the dragon read the list of names on the plaque next to the door. In luck, he found the name he was looking for, and interestingly enough there was another name listed next to his.

He pressed the call button next to his friend's name, but there was nothing at first. It took a few more tries before a throaty growl made its way through the call box. "What do you want?"

"Its me." Dreki said simply.

There were a few moments of silence before a loud buzzing noise made its way to their ears. The Dark-Hunter opened the door and walked inside, followed by Hiccup. They made their way to the apartment that was mentioned on the call box and knocked on the door. It was immediately opened by a tall, handsome and tired looking man wearing a nightshirt and blue pajama pants.

"Why are you here?" he growled with sleep still deep in his throat.

"Shouldn't you be getting ready to be on the prowl?" Dreki asked as his eyebrow quirked.

The man simply grinned. "I was able to break free from my contract, dragon."

The dragon was shocked by the news. He had heard of a few Dark-Hunters that were able to free themselves from their contract, but he didn't know any of them personally. This is the first Dark-Hunter that he had met who was able to bargain for their soul back. Before he was able to ask any questions, the sorcerer yawned and asked his previous question again.

"I need help, Balthazar."


	12. Chapter 11

**A/N: **Oh dear, how did I forget to post this on ? Thanks to one of my best friends for reminding me (you know who you are *hugs*). This is the unedited version. Every time I try to go back and edit this version, it just laughs at me and closes the program, so I've stopped trying. Anyway, I've been really busy with school and work, so that's why this came a little late. I can't believe its already been a year writing this! I should have the next (and final) chapter done soon!

* * *

The man named Balthazar crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned against the door frame of his apartment. He stayed silent for a few moments. The old sorcerer's ancient eyes looked calculating, almost as if he was sizing up an opponent. His entire demeanor intimidated Hiccup, and he wasn't so sure that he liked the idea of such a frightening man "babysitting" him.

But, it was better than being coddled or eaten by a dragon.

"You promised me a favor Balthazar, and I told you that I fully intended to collect on that." Dreki reminded.

The wizard put his hand up in order to silence the beast. "I know, old friend. I am not questioning whether or not I will help you, because I will if you ask me to. I am just waiting on an what it is you need my help with."

Dreki took in a deep breath as he gathered his words. Even though Balthazar and Dreki had been friends for over nine centuries, neither divulged why they choose to be Dark-Hunters. It wasn't a subject that was easy for either of them to explain.

The dragon swallowed before he explained himself. "This is Hiccup. He is the reincarnation of my mate, we had died in a massacre. A few dragons escaped the village's wrath, and one of those survivors blames the two of us for his family's death. He kidnapped Hiccup once, and I fully intend for it not to happen again."

_We? _Hiccup wondered what he meant by that, but he figured he would be able to ask questions later.

The sorcerer nodded in understanding. "So he needs a place to stay, I imagine."

"Yes, until I know that the threat is -" Dreki paused to search for the proper word, " - eliminated."

Balthazar looked from the dragon to the boy who was all but hiding behind him. He smiled kindly at the boy, hoping to ease some of his anxiety. However, his eyes still looked much to calculating for the boy's taste. His eyes turned back to his friend's. "Alright, but I am not an immortal warrior anymore Dreki, and I have another person that I intend to protect. If this threat comes to my door I will do what I can, but my first duty is to my apprentice."

Dreki didn't like the idea that he couldn't completely put his faith on this human if all else failed, but he had no other choice. He understood the sorcerer's predicament, and he could not say that he would not feel the same if he was in his position. It was the burden of love and loyalty. "Thank you, Balthazar."

"No need." The sorcerer nodded.

Dreki turned to take one last look at his beloved. Sadness filled his heart at the idea of leaving Hiccup here in a strange city without knowing if he would return or not. He took a moment to tell himself that he would return, and that things would be alright between them when he did. "We'll talk when I come back for you, I shouldn't be long."

Hiccup's eyes turned to the ground, and he said nothing. He desperately wanted to reach out and enter the safety of his arms. He wanted to feel the illusion of his love again, but he knew his heart couldn't bear it. _We'll talk later, maybe we can start over and have a true relationship. _He allowed himself that illusion. He nodded hoping that Dreki would be reassured, but when he looked up he realized that his dragon was gone and Balthazar was staring at him with sad eyes.

The older man entered the apartment without a word, leaving the door open for his charge. Hiccup entered the apartment with a faint, sad thank you on his lips.

The sorcerer turned to him. "Like I told your mate, no thanks are necessary."

_Your mate. _Suddenly, everything hit Hiccup in one big wave. He couldn't stop himself from falling on his knees and crying out the agony that had invaded his soul. Balthazar approached the boy and kneeled beside him. He put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I don't want to sound unsympathetic, Hiccup, I can't imagine what you must be going through, but I would like to take you to the spare room so you don't wake my apprentice."

Hiccup bit his lip to prevent the next sob from making a sound. "I'm sorry," he whimpered.

"Don't be, I'm already awake."

The two turned to a boy that didn't seem much older than Hiccup. He had kind brown eyes and a smile that was calming. A hand ran through his unruly black hair in an effort to make it look presentable to their new guest, despite the fact that his tall, lean body was clothed in only a nightshirt and boxers.

He approached and sat next to the fellow college student. He put an arm around Hiccup. "What's wrong buddy? Do you want to talk about it?" he said in a voice that implied that he was talking to a child.

Balthazar sighed with frustration. "Hiccup happens to be an adult, Dave. You could show a little more respect."

"Says the person you was kicking him to the corner of the house while he was crying," Dave snapped back, "I'm sorry about that, I'm no good with comforting people, not saying that I don't like to or don't want to, or anything. I'm just saying that didn't mean to sound like you're little kid or something a-and I'm sounding more awkward aren't I?

Hiccup laughed despite the tiny tears that were falling from his eyes. "Don't worry about it, I'm socially awkward, too."

"So we're at an accord." Dave chuckled, "How's about we go and sit on the couch, 'kay?"

Hiccup nodded before he stood. The three men made their way to the couch, which was only a few steps away from them. Hiccup plopped on the couch, a deep sigh escaped his throat. He put his head in his hands, but no more sobs or whimpers escaped him. He didn't have the tears to cry.

"I - I said really horrible things to Dreki and-" Hiccup chocked on his words before taking his hands away from his face, " - he's gone."

Both Dave and Balthazar looked sympathetic towards Hiccup. "He's coming back, Hiccup." Balthazar reassured.

"But," Hiccup chewed his bottom lip, not allowing the words to escape, as if saying them would make it come true. _What if he dies? _

Dave rubbed the boy's back. "He's a Dark-Hunter, right? If so, he's immortal. He can't die."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "I thought he was a Were-Hunter."

"He is both. He was born a Were-Hunter, but he became a Dark-Hunter when he died." Balthazar explained. "Dark-Hunters are elite warriors who sold their souls to the Greek Goddess Artemis in order to have one act of revenge."

"Not only is he a dragon, but he's an undead dragon?" Hiccup asked with sarcasm dripping from his voice.

Balthazar chuckled. "Its not like he's a zombie, or anything, it just means that he lives forever in order to kill creatures named Daimons that feed on the souls of mortals."

Hiccup's eyes widened with realization. "Those vampire things that tried to kill me!"

"That's one way of putting it, I guess." Balthazar agreed.

Hiccup gathered the information that was given to him, and it helped put a few pieces of the puzzle that now was his life together. Although, there were still some events that did not quite connect together. "Why did he sell himself to kill those things for all of eternity?"

The sorcerer considered the question for a moment. "I don't know, only he can answer that for you." The older man could tell that Hiccup was not satisfied with the answer, so he continued. "But, if I had to give a guess, he mentioned that you both died in a massacre. I think he sold his soul so that he could take revenge on the people that killed you two."

Hiccup looked more angry than relieved from the possible scenario. "You mean to say that instead of spending on eternity with me- I mean, his mate, he sold his soul for something like vengeance." the college student growled.

There were a few moments of awkward silence between the three men before Dave spoke up. "I know that if someone I loved died, and I couldn't do anything to stop it, I wouldn't be able to face them out of guilt."

It didn't take long before Hiccup's face turned from anger to understanding.

_If it hadn't been nightfall, the smoke would have darkened out the sun. Every home was on fire, including his own. His father lay slain in front of it. _

_But, he was only one of the many corpses that littered the ground of the village. Hiccup continued to trip over arms and legs, but he didn't let it distract him. He needed to get to his mate. He needed to find him and somehow get away from the village. _

_There were two sides of the massacre; those who defended their future leader and those who thought him a demon. The dragons did their best to try to help the few humans that would never abandon Hiccup, but they were up against an entire village who were born to kill dragons. It was becoming increasingly evident that they were fighting a losing battle. _

"_Toothless!" He shouted, but his voice was drowned out by the battle cries of the warriors who fought each other, and by the dragons calling out for one another. "Toothless!" _

_A shout was called over his shoulder. He slowed to turn to see where the cry came from just as an axe was making its way towards his shoulder. However, before the blade could slice him in two, Fishlegs ducked in front of Hiccup and blocked the blow with his own axe. "Go!" he struggled to say as I pushed the man back with his weapon. _

_Hiccup didn't waste any time and ran. He ran until he was at the edge of the village. He still could not see his Night Fury, but he knew that he was close. Even before they mated, he had a sixth sense about where his dragon was at all times. He stopped and scanned the forest that surrounded his village, until he saw the glint of medal off in the distance. He ran as fast as he could towards the object, knowing that when he reached it Toothless would be there. _

_Sure enough, the mysterious glint belonged to a cage that was holding the Night Fury captive. He was struggling against the bondage, throwing his entire body against the door of the cage. Hiccup approached it slowly, hoping the dragon would notice his presence before hitting the medal again. "Toothless! Stop, don't hurt yourself." the young Viking commanded. _

_The dragon shook his head and snorted, but he stayed away from the door. _I'm glad you're safe, my love. _Toothless projected. _

"_I'm glad I found you!" Hiccup nearly shouted in joy, "How did you get trapped here?" _

After I left you behind, I tried my hardest to reach Astrid, but it was too late. _Toothless looked at the ground, his shame evident._ She already shouted to the village that I was a shape shifter sent by Loki. At first they didn't believe her, but then other villagers came forward and said how they thought some of the dragons in the village had been changing into humans at night. Eventually a fight broke out between the two groups. I tried to run to get back to you, but some of the villagers had caught me with a net and threw me in the old dragon cages. I tried slipping through as a human, but the bars are too thick. I've almost got the door undone as myself, though.

_Hiccup looked down at the lock, and saw that indeed Toothless had loosened it. "I'm going back to the village and getting my tools." _

_Before Hiccup was able to attempt his new plan, a male voice behind him said, "Where do you think you're going?" _

_The Viking turned to a group of people whose evil intentions were written on their features. In the middle of the group was Astrid and Snotlout, looking more like the harbingers of death and destruction rather than human beings he used to know as his friends. The female Viking stepped forward towards her former fiancée, angry and jealous words ready to spill from her lips, but before she was able to speak, he punched her straight in the face with the force of his fury. It was enough to knock her to the ground. _

_Seeing his secret love being thrown to the ground, Snotlout lunged at Hiccup and tackled him to the ground. Hiccup could hear his mate roaring as Snotlout punched at the younger man's face and head. Astrid stumbled as she got on her feet, a hand placed over the area of her face that was hit. "Stop," she commanded, "I want him alive, tie him up." _

_Snoutlout punched Hiccup once more before he stepped away from the writhing boy. Two men from the group behind them came forward. One of the them forced Hiccup into a sitting position before the other tied his hands and feet together. The tied Viking was barely aware of what was happening, or the sound of medal being weakened behind him. His only thoughts were that he and his mate were going to die, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. _

_Astrid knelt beside Hiccup before she lifted the knife in her hand to the line of his sight. "You know, I wasn't stupid. I know there was a tryst going on between you and someone else. I wouldn't have minded so much if it was another woman, even one from another village, because at least I would be able to look at you and still call you my husband. Now, I'm too ashamed. A man? A shape shifter? You really have out done yourself now, freak." _

_Toothless continued to try to pry his cage's door open with his body. He attempted to use his magic to try to teleport out of the cage, though he knew we was dangerously low on it, but to no avail. After exhausting his blue fire to try to stop the madness, he was tired and weak. He roared his frustration. _

_Astrid was not impressed with Toothless' efforts, and was not afraid to continue to taunt the two. She smirked. "You should have chosen me. I would have been a much better lover, Hiccup. I could have provided you wealth, children, a future, but instead you gave it up for the most disgusting kind of pleasure." _

"_Could you have given me love Astrid?" Hiccup asked with a groan. "You saw me as the Dragon Tamer, the chieftain's son, an opportunity for power. I didn't want to mate with a dragon merely to satisfy a perversion, I fell in love. Jokes on you, because I realized the strongest power comes from the heart, not from a title." _

_Astrid's smirk did not falter. "The heart, huh? Let's see how powerful your heart is." _

_Just as the knife made its way towards Hiccup's chest, Toothless gave one more adrenaline-filled push against the door, and finally freed himself. But, it was too late. The knife made its way into his mate's heart, giving the two bounded mates only moments to live. The mighty beat could already feel his life force draining from him as Hiccup lay bound and dying. _

_The Night Fury considered briefly using his last moments to kill their murderer, but his mate looked so pained and frightened. Hiccup needed him more than Toothless needed Astrid's blood. He crawled toward Hiccup, and wrapped his body around him. _

I'm sorry, my love. _Toothless projected, his sorrow and regret making its way through their channel_.

_Hiccup allowed a tear to fall from his eye, the first he cried since his mother passed. "No, I'm sorry. If we hadn't bonded you could have gotten away and lived." _

Silly human, you know I didn't want to live without you. _Toothless closed his eyes as he felt himself slipping away. _I just wish I could have avenged you.

_It was the last thought that passed between them before they both fell into darkness. _

_Hiccup gasped as he awoke. It was the most vivid dream he had ever experienced, and he was no stranger to those kinds of dreams. He swore that if he looked down at his chest, there would be a blood soaked hole in it. Had he really dreamed of his demise from long ago? It certainly was a possibility. _

_The boy tried to get a grip on his bearings in the hopes that it would calm him down. He looked around the spare room that Balthazar and Dave were so kind to let him use. It was spacious and comfortable, although there was very little color or furniture. Just white walls, the bed he slept on and an armoire that kept a sizeable TV. _

_Yet, even as he became comfortable with his surroundings, he still could not still the thoughts that ran through his head. He thought of the fear the former Hiccup felt, the anguish of not being able to help the person who needed him the most, the love that filled him even as his demise was near. Most of all, he thought of how Toothless had looked at him as he died. He looked so regretful, but his eyes still held adoration, love and happiness. _

_The same happiness he saw in his eyes when the saw the movie, when they spoke of their interests, when he made love to him. The air in Hiccup's lungs rushed out of him as he realized that Toothless had seen his differences, and had loved him all the same. He was as happy to be with him as he was to be with his fallen mate. _

_He had loved him. Yes, it was quick. Yes, it was unnatural. But, it was true love. _

_Hiccup shot out of bed. He needed to be with him. He couldn't just stand by as he was killed once more unable to do anything about it. The college student, and former Viking, was not going to make the same mistake twice. _

_The only problem was trying to get back to California. He was on the other side of the country. Even if he was able to afford the plane ride back it would still take several hours. Hiccup sat back on the bed and put his head in his hands. _

_There was a moment of silence, an almost peace, before he could hear the door creaking quietly open. He looked over to see that the elder sorcerer was looking inside of his room. _

"_You think loudly, Hiccup." Balthazar said in order to explain his presence at nearly five in the morning. _

_Hiccup looked slightly surprised, and a little apologetic. "Could you hear my thoughts?" _

_Balthazar laughed quietly. "A lot of people assume such, but no. I couldn't go back to sleep, and I heard you pacing. I thought to check to see if you were okay." _

_Hiccup looked down at his lap. "I need to get back. I've realized something much too late, and I can't just let Toothless go off on his own and get himself killed." _

_The sorcerer smiled. "Toothless, so that's what his name used to be?" _

_The college student nodded. "At least, I think so. I remember some things so vividly, but others still allude me." Hiccup looked at Balthazar with a look that betrayed his guilt. "Do you think I'll ever remember everything?" _

"_I don't know." Balthazar answered genuinely, "But, I can help you with your other troubles." _

_Hiccup's eyes turned hopeful. "What do you mean?" _

"_I can get you to, Dreki." Balthazar said with a small smile. "I've been having Dave practice teleportation spells. We've gone cross country before, but he's never brought another person along. I think this will be a wonderful learning opportunity for him." _

_The college student's eyes brightened as his lips curved into a relieved smile. "Thank you." _


	13. Chapter 12

A/N: Long time no see, huh? Well, I hope you guys enjoy the last chapter of Sleeping With Ghosts! Its been a fun and exhausting journey. I will have an epilogue out really soon! Hopefully, I'll write the entire thing on the plane back home :)

* * *

Dreki flew gracefully through a midnight black sky towards Volundr's pungent stench, ready to step into a battlefield. No one threatened his mate, _no one. _He wasn't about to allow another person to harm his Hiccup. There would be no mistakes this time. The Night Fury would kill his opponent, even if it meant sacrificing his own life to do so.

He allowed his hurt over Hiccup's distrust, and the anger he felt towards the begrudged Nadder, to fuel his resolve. He landed in front of an abandoned barn, knowing that the other dragon was probably inside, licking his wounds.

Dreki surveyed his surroundings. His landing sight looked to be an abandoned farm that was at least a few miles from human eyes.

Perfect.

Dreki used his powerful tail to force the barn doors open, revealing his enemy.

* * *

Balthazar and Dave stood on the north and south pole of their Merlin's circle respectively; Hiccup stood in the middle. There was a quiet hush in the room as the two sorcerer's concentrated on their magic. As it was explained to Hiccup, it was difficult for even an experienced Sorcerer to teleport, and so the utmost concentration was needed.

Hiccup was so grateful for the two sorcerer's assistance. He couldn't help but think that if he hadn't been incredibly selfish, they wouldn't of had to have been bothered at all. When Hiccup explained this to Balthazar, the older man reminded Hiccup that the past could not be changed and that it was no bother at all. In fact, Balthazar was grateful for the chance to finally repay his dear friend.

Hiccup had asked why the sorcerer had owed his lover such a grand favor. The older man smiled as he explained his story.

_Balthazar trudged through an endless sea of snow, delirious and exhausted; hopeless in finding shelter, warmth or food that night. As a Dark-Hunter, he was immune to death's icy touch, but that did not mean that he was immune to suffering. He could still feel the Northern European wind slap his face mercilessly, the wet cold of snow creeping upon his entire body, as if the very substance was trying to encase him in a cage of ice. _

_And due to an unfortunate Morganian, who sought his demise by placing a spell on the old Sorcerer, he could also feel the painful emptiness that was hunger. _

_Balthazar had not felt hunger in nearly two-hundred years, and the sudden sensation had nearly incapacitated him. Luckily enough, his body had enough sense to only let the hunger exhaust him after he was able to subdue his enemy. However, the time that was wasted in fighting a lowly Morganian had cost him a place to stay and food to eat. After the battle, it began to snow so heavily that he lost track of where his road was, and so he was wondering through wilderness. _

_Alone. _

_Tired. _

_And nearly frightened. _

_He knew that as long as he followed a certain direction that eventually he would find some sort of comfort from the winter. It had been a full two days, and yet there were no signs of life. _

_Balthazar wanted so desperately to continue on his way, but he eventually lost his footing and fell into the snow. He tried to gather any remaining strength he had, but there was no more in him than a man on his death bed. He allowed the snow and the darkness of sleep to consume him. _

_When the sorcerer awoke, the aroma of food filled his nose. His stomach rumbled in craving before his eyes had even opened to see what was filling his senses. Once he had opened his eyes, he was met with a rather grumpy looking man holding a bowl of food of some kind. Balthazar was willing to fight to the death for the bowl in the other man's hands, but fortunately he didn't need to. Before any words were spoken, the man handed him the bowl. _

_Balthazar drank the broth within the bowl greedily. He nearly choked on the chunks of meat and vegetables that were scarcely in the soup, but he swallowed everything that was provided to him. When he was done he handed back the bowl to his unexpected comrade. "Many thanks." _

_The man remained cold. "I wasn't aware that Dark-Hunters could get so hungry." _

_Balthazar merely smirked. "And I wasn't aware of any dragons who were willing to help sorcerers."\_

_It was common knowledge that rouge or Morganian sorcerers would hunt dragons for various body parts. Bones, scales and claws were often used in powerful but dark spells. Because of this, dragons were known to kill sorcerers on sight without thought or regret. It was easier to group all sorcerers together, than to ask questions. _

_Having lived for as long as Balthazar had, he recognized a Dragon Were-Hunter when he saw one. _

"_I've never known a Merlinian who was dumb enough to try me." _

_Balthazar smiled; his savior was definitely more open-minded than most. "Why did you decide to help me?" _

_For a moment, the dragon was silent. He could not come up with a reason for why he would help the sorcerer, or any human for that matter. However, when he had found him in his frozen garden he couldn't stop his lover's voice from whispering how cruel it would be to leave someone defenseless out in the snow._

_When he picked him up, he discovered that there wasn't anything physically alarming about the man; no reason to distrust him. It wasn't until he had dropped the man on his bed that he could sense the magical essence radiate from him. He also realized that despite the fact that the sorcerer was breathing, his heart wasn't beating. He didn't smell like Daimon, so there could only be one more explanation. _

_He had unknowingly let a fellow Dark-Hunter into his home. This person hadn't been in danger of dying, and he was not defenseless. There had been an urge to leave him out in the snow again, but what would have been the point? _

_Dark-Hunters could not hurt one another, if one were to harm the other than the original perpetrator would feel the blow ten times as much; it was a safeguard to prevent from such an occurrence to happen. Even though Dark-Hunters were weaker around each other, another safeguard, neither of the two men were in any danger. The blizzard outside prevented Daimons from coming after humans, or them. _

_Still, he was a filthy human and likely was not deserving of such kindness. Yet, the voice that had brought him inside, kept him inside. _

"_I guess you could say that I have been pacified." _

_Balthazar nodded in understanding. From the tone of his voice, he could tell that it was someone that pacified the dragon in front of him. "Love has that incredible power." _

_The dragon gave a surprised expression, but said nothing. _

_After a few moments of silence, the sorcerer broke the tranquility. "My name is Balthazar." _

"_Dreki." the dragon answered back with much less irritation in his voice than before. If this human knew the kind of power that love had, than he must have also experienced it. Anyone who has experienced such a power couldn't be too much of a monster. "I didn't think that I would find another Dark-Hunter around here." _

_Balthazar's eyes widened with mild surprise. "You're a Dark-Hunter?" Were-Hunters that were also Dark-Hunters were extremely rare, especially because of the animosity between the two groups. _

_Dreki lifted the sleeve of his shirt to reveal the double-bow and arrow mark on his upper-arm, indicating that he was indeed a Dark-Hunter. Balthazar made a small noise of acknowledgment in the back of his throat. "I guess that means I have forever to return your generous favor." _

_For the first time in what seemed to be a lifetime, Dreki laughed. _

Balthazar then went on to say that he and Dreki had become good friends. Good fortune had brought the two together many times after that incident, and even after almost a thousand years of friendship, they still communicated through letters or an occasional phone call.

Hiccup was very comforted to know that Dreki wasn't absolutely alone for his entire life, but it did nothing to rid his guilt of almost leaving the dragon without the comfort of love or support. He needed to make amends, and he was hoping that their transportation spell would help in that goal.

As soon as the college student began to feel the inklings of impatience creep up on him, he felt the floor beneath him drop. Yet, Hiccup did not fall into the giant chasm that he expected to be underneath him. Instead, when he looked down, the tile of Dreki's front room met his feet.

The familiar wave of dizziness and nausea hit Hiccup with a vengeance. It was obvious that he was not the only one affected. As Hiccup crumpled to the floor on his side, Dave fell on his hands and knees. For the two men who were rather inexperienced with magical travel, it felt like the world was spinning.

Balthazar allowed himself to smile with humor. He remembered the first few times that he experienced teleportation. At least Dave hadn't vomited on him, which was better than he could say. "Alright, shake it off, we have work to do."

Dave was much more accustomed to the dizziness than Hiccup was, so he was able to orient himself and get back on his feet much more easily. The younger man, however, wanted to continue to stay on the non-spinning floor.

'Come on, Hiccup." Balthazar sighed with mild frustration, "We need your help if we're going to find Dreki."

Thoroughly reminded of his mission, Hiccup lifted himself off the floor. Despite the immense sickness he was feeling, he managed to stagger to a standing position. From there he judged that the best course of action was to travel to the kitchen, so that he was able to sit on one of the chairs. He figured that they needed to come up with a plan, and they didn't need to stand to do so.

Hiccup clumsily led his two companions to the kitchen table. Before he sat down, he noticed that there was a package on the table. There was a strong urge to reach inside the box, an urge that could not be easily ignored. It was almost as if something was tugging at his being, compelling him to take what was in the package. Hiccup knew it was rightfully his. Before he could stop himself, he pulled out what looked to be a necklace.

It wasn't an intricate piece of jewelry, but it was surely beautiful. Hiccup recognized the pendant that hung from the simple silver chain as one of Dreki's scales. As he gently caressed the scale with his thumb, he could feel his heart ache with an intensity that could kill a weaker man. This beautiful necklace had been his before he had died; he probably wore it that fateful day.

To touch something of that time made the entire situation much more real.

"Is that one of Dreki's scales?" Balthazar interrupted Hiccup's thoughts gently. The boy nodded in response, not able to do much else. "If you don't mind, I can use that to track where he is."

The younger man turned to the sorcerer, and reluctantly handed the necklace to him without a word. Balthazar closed his eyes in concentration as he used his magic on the item in his closed palm. A pleasant warmth seeped from his fingers and invaded the room around them, blanketing Hiccup in a comforting embrace. It was almost as if Dreki was with him now, holding him in his strong, loving arms.

After a brief moment, the sorcerer opened his eyes. Hiccup was disappointed at the loss of the comfort, but he was more concerned with whether the spell worked or not.

Balthazar was happy to be able to announce his good news. "I know where he is."

* * *

Once Dreki found himself inside the barn, he transformed back into his humanoid form. He wanted answers, and he was afraid that his dragon instincts would hinder his ability to receive them. Luckily for him, Volundr was also in his human form. It gave him a chance to talk, before he was forced to kill him.

The Nadder was sitting leisurely on a bundle of hay, wearing a smirk that Dreki wanted to punch off. However, his eyes were wavering. While his body language suggested that he was uncaring, his eyes betrayed fear and vulnerability. For a dragon, those eyes were the ultimate weakness.

"Hello, _Toothless." _Volundr spat his name as if it were poison. "But, that's not your name either is it? I remember when we called you Sleipnir. Then, you allowed some human boy to call you by such a ridiculous name, and insisted everyone call you Toothless from then on. I should have known then how pathetic you were."

Dreki laughed with both humor and madness. "Pathetic? Yes, maybe I am. But, so are you." Volundr narrowed his eyes, but allowed Dreki to continue. "You are holding a thousand year old grudge for the person that you love, how are you different than me?"

Volundr snarled as though Dreki insulted him. "I would have never sacrificed my people! Never!"

It was Dreki's turn to snarl. " I did NOT sacrifice anyone! I was young, foolish and careless, yes, but it was never my intent for Astrid to see us that day, for any human to see us. I knew it would be a death sentence for both of us, but I did not think of the consequences for the rest of you. For that, I am truly sorry."

Volundr snorted. "You think that admitting your wrongs and apologizing will bring me peace, Toothless? No, I wont have peace until you and that little BRAT have suffered like I have!"

"You don't think we've suffered?" Dreki said in a voice the betrayed his disbelief, "Hiccup died just like your mate did. I've had to live on without the person I loved for a thousand years, just like you. How can you say that I haven't suffered?"

"Oh, I think you've suffered," Volundr smiled maliciously, a look of insanity in his eyes "But, you have not suffered enough. I will make you pay, for everything!"

* * *

Balthazar had decided that it would have been a good idea to drive one of Dreki's cars to where he sensed the dragon would be. It wasn't difficult to find the keys as they were all hanging by nails in the garage. The complaints started soon after they drove out of the garage.

"Why can't we just teleport there?" Dave asked impatiently. Everything about his body language, from his crossed arms to the nervous twitch in his foot, suggested that Dave was anxiousness. Hiccup could only guess that Dave didn't like cars, but he couldn't know for sure.

Balthazar gave a short laugh. "I don't think that Hiccup could make another trip, besides, you know that teleportation is more likely to be successful -"

"-if you know the area." Dave said over Balthazar. It was obvious that this was not the first conversation they had about magical travel.

Hiccup, who was sitting in the back, was just as impatient as Dave, although he agreed with Balthazar. What good would he be if he was incapacitated by his nausea?

"We're close," Balthazar assured them, although Hiccup suspected to was more for Dave's sake than for his own, "Don't worry."

Before long, the car was traveling along a gravel road leading up to what looked like an abandoned barn. As soon as the car slowed to a stop, Hiccup jumped out of the car and ran towards the open barn door. Balthazar and Dave ran after him.

* * *

Dreki did not like the predicament he was in. He clearly underestimated his opponent, but he wasn't aware of that until Volundr was on top of him, snarling and snapping at his face. Dreki was able to use his paw to stop the other dragon from reaching his throat, but it was becoming increasingly hard to hold him in place.

The Dark-Hunter was becoming ever more frustrated with himself. He prided himself on being one step ahead of his pray, but the Nadder took him by surprise. As soon as they transformed, the Night Fury lunged, but not for a specific body part. He thought that the Nadder would begin using his poisoned darts, which would be much harder to throw if the Night Fury was close to him. He did not expect that Volundr would also jump. Because of the Nadder's bigger size and weight, he was easily able to bring Dreki down onto the ground.

_Did you not expect this? _Volundr projected as he continued to snap near the Night Fury's neck. _Did you not expect that I would want to see the moment of your death when I bite your head off. _

No, he did not expect this kind of savagery, even from a very pissed off dragon. The only way he could see a possibility of getting out of his predicament is if he turned his opponent's madness against him. If the dragon was unable to think clearly, than Dreki would at least have one advantage over him. He would have to risk agitating the dragon further, but it was his only chance.

_You're not really angry at me or Hiccup are you? _Dreki projected. _You're really angry at yourself for not being able to protect your family? _The Nadder roared angrily, but Dreki continued fiercely, just as angry as Volundr was. _You were such a coward, Volundr. You didn't bond with your mate, because you were scared! You didn't even have the decency to die with her! _

Volundr had became so angry that he was no longer concerned with killing the Night Fury, at least not yet. He wanted to cause him an immense amount of pain. He rose to his hind legs so that he was able to breathe magical fire upon his enemy.

Dreki saw his opportunity. While all dragons could "breathe fire", the Nadder had not evolved to use it as a primary weapon because of their limited eyesight. Therefore, it took a Nadder more time and effort to breathe fire than any other species. This gave Dreki some time to roll away from the blast.

However, just as he was going to roll away, he felt a tug at his wing. With horror, he realized that during their struggle some hay bundles had fallen on his delicate wing, trapping him beneath his enemy. He didn't have enough time to pull himself from the hay before the Nadder attacked, so he braced himself. While Dreki was protected by regular fire, if the Nadder tapped into his magical reserves, he was in trouble.

A few moments of time passed by with no pain or heat. Even for a Nadder, this was going by way too slowly. Dreki braved a quick glance at Volundr, and was shocked by what he saw. The Nadder was being choked by what looked like a blue translucent rope.

He didn't spend a lot of time contemplating the situation, and instead thanked his lucky stars that he was able to tug himself free. He leaped away from the Nadder, and looked over to where the rope came from. He nearly wept for joy when he saw Balthazar, his charge, and Hiccup standing at the entrance to the barn.

Dave was holding onto the rope as best he could, but it looked like he was struggling. As soon as the young sorcerer inclined his head to his prisoner, Balthazar and Hiccup raced to Volundr. The college student used his instincts to scratch and massage the weak spots he knew would cause the dragon to drop to the floor. Balthazar then stepped forward and began to chant quietly and quickly under his breath. It took only a moment for the dragon to transform into a human.

"W-what's happened?" Volundr asked with a stutter. "What did you do?"

The Night Fury was curious as to what was happening, so he decided to transform himself back into a man before joining the group to find out. It must have been something extreme if the once deadly Nadder was now shaking like a leaf. When he looked to the sorcerer who had cast the mysterious spell, he realized that Balthazar's eyes were colder than Dreki had ever seen them.

"I have permanently disrupted the electrical signals that allow your molecules to shift and form a different shape," Balthazar explained with little emotion in his voice, "You will be what you hate the most for the rest of your long, pitiful life."

Volundr made an undignified sound. "So, I'm stuck like this forever? What of my magic?"

Balthazar smirked, conniving mischief in his cold eyes . "The same electrical signals that allow your body to change are also what allows you to use your magic."

Dreki prepared himself for a sudden fight. He had thought that the news would make Volundr want to fight or even kill the sorcerer, but his assumptions were wrong. The man lying before him simply wept.

"Pathetic." The Dark-Hunter spat. Hiccup sent a warning glare his way; it wasn't honorable to patronize an enemy when they were down. Dreki was about to send an apologetic look to his mate, but Volundr suddenly launched himself at his rival and began chocking him.

"Why can't you leave me be?" Volundr sobbed as he weakly held Dreki's throat.

The Night Fury was so taken aback by Volundr's action that he didn't think to fight for release. Instead, Hiccup pushed his mate's attacker, and punched him in the jaw as hard as he could. The force caused the former Nadder to fall back onto the ground.

Volundr curled into a defensive ball and began to sob uncontrollably. "Just leave me be." he demanded weakly.

"Let's go," Balthazar suggested, "There isn't anything he'll be able to do to you two ever again."

They all turned away from the pathetic scene in front of them, and walked out of the barn.

"If you two don't want me to crash this car, than you'll wait until you're back home!" Balthazar scolded the reunited couple while they kissed passionately in the back of the car.

They pulled away from one another, but the ancient sorcerer had a feeling that it wasn't because of his commands.

"So, you forgive me?" Hiccup asked hopefully. Regret and guilt softened his emerald eyes, and it made Dreki fall in love with him even more.

Dreki chuckled; a sparkle of love and happiness in his own eyes. "Silly, Hiccup, there's nothing to forgive. Everything is okay again."

"But-" Hiccup was interrupted by a finger placed upon his lips.

"We're together again, and that's all that matters." Dreki said with a kind smile. Hiccup returned the affection.

"There's something I want to ask, though." Hiccup said as he settled himself next to Dreki. The Night Fury made a noise of acknowledgment as he wrapped a protective arm around his mate's shoulder.

"Can I call you Toothless? It just seems – right."

Toothless roared with laughter.


	14. Epilogue

**AN - Finally! Last installment of Sleeping With Ghosts. Hope you guys enjoy. Don't worry, there will be more ToothlessxHiccup and DrekixHiccup action from me, so this isn't exactly the end. **

* * *

It was obvious to Hiccup that Andrea would have had a promising career in hairdressing if she had not chosen to be a Squire. She was able to turn his tangled mess into something that was manageable and presentable for his wedding.

_Wedding. _

Even in his mind the word had sounded foreign. Previous to meeting Dreki – no, previous to reuniting with Toothless, he had never thought of spending the rest of his life with anyone. Now, he could not imagine an existence without his beloved.

Even so, he still had to look at this ring finger to affirm that this was really happening. He would vow to spend the rest of his life with his mate, and later that night they would join their life forces once again. It was hard to believe that one day would make everything as it should have been. They would start over from where they were so long ago.

Hiccup took a deep breath to calm his excitement.

"Nervous?" Andrea asked with humor tinting her voice.

He shook his head. "I have never been so un-nervous in my life."

Andrea smiled almost as brightly as Hiccup.

* * *

Hiccup had been chosen to be the "bride" of the wedding. He would be the spectacle that everyone would stand to observe while Toothless waited for him at the altar. During the process of planning the wedding, Hiccup had complained whole-heartily about his girlish role.

But as he looked down the aisle and locked gazes with Toothless, he chastised himself for ever bringing trouble about the matter. It no longer mattered how feminine it was, or how many people were staring at him. All he cared about was that he only needed to walk a few more steps before he would be forever tied to the one he loved.

Hiccup's father decided to decline the invitation to appear at the wedding, so he walked alone. Yet, he didn't feel alone. He felt his mother's presence beside him, and he knew that she was making fun of him for wearing such a horrendously white suit. The thought brought tears to his eyes and a wide smile to his lips.

_This is it. Don't mess it up. _

The closer he walked to the end, the more blurred everything became. Faces, music, the warm spring air, everything was clouded in a haze of bliss. All that remained clear was the smiling face of his soon-to-be husband. It was as if time stood still to recognize this moment, this monumental moment that would change the course of his life. It was almost too much to bear, but it was a burden that he was glad to have.

He gladly faced his mate and repeated the tired words that he had rehearsed for so long. Even as he said them, he knew the words were meaningless. Everything that had meaning, and ever would have meaning, stood in front of him.

"I pronounce you partners for life."

The cheering and clapping commenced, but he was far too deep into Toothless' loving embrace to notice. They shared another breathless kiss with the promise of many more to come.

* * *

The reception was held in Toothless's backyard. It was decorated in light hues of blue, cream and red; colors that according to the wedding planner symbolized their love, although neither Hiccup or Toothless understood why. Tables were scattered across the lawn with family and friends sitting around them, enjoying food, drink and conversation. Everything was bathed in the wonderful glow of afternoon sun.

Hiccup counted his blessings.

To see both Toothless and Balthazar standing under sunlight was the best wedding present he could have asked for. It was as wonderful as it was unexpected. During the early phases of planning for the wedding, a Dark-Hunter by the name of Nick had stopped by with a box that had held Toothless' soul. He said that an anonymous person had pleaded with him to try to convince Artemis to let it go, and he had agreed.

"_Safe to say it wasn't easy," The light-haired man had said to Hiccup, "But, I was assured that the two of you were deserving of such." _

_Hiccup, who was much too confused to say anything to the strange man at the doorway, reached out for the box. However, just as he was close enough to touch it, he pulled away from the immense heat it created. _

_Nick chuckled darkly, "Yeah, it's as hot as lava, and in order for Dreki to gain his soul back, you have to hold the medallion inside the box over his mark." He pointed to the double bow and arrow mark on his face to illustrate his point. _

_Hiccup's eyes widened in surprise, but his newfound determination to make his beloved mortal did not waver. He reached for the box again, but Nick pulled away. _

"_There's more," Nick growled, obviously annoyed with the boy's impatience, "He has to gain his soul back while he is dying. Dying, not dead. It won't be easy. In order for Dreki-" _

"_Toothless." Hiccup interrupted sharply._

"_For Dreki," Nick insisted, "to begin the process of dying, you have to look for a time when he is weak. When you see his eyes turn from black to their original color, that is when you strike him. As soon as this happens, you have to grab the medallion inside and hold it over the mark until the medallion cools. I warn you, if you drop the medallion before it cools, than his soul is lost forever, cursed to wander the earth for all eternity." _

_Hiccup narrowed his eyes. "I won't drop it." _

_Nick raised an eyebrow, but his expression suggested nonchalance. "Can you be so sure? Well, it doesn't matter now. It's out of my hands." Nick handed the box to Hiccup, who took it carefully. As soon as the exchange was completed, Nick walked away. Hiccup didn't wait to see where he went, and closed the massive door. _

_The box was radiating enough heat to be uncomfortable, so he quickly made his way to the kitchen counter, and set it down gently. Everything had happened so unexpectedly that the college student didn't know what do with beautifully adorned box. He decided quickly to go back to his business of cutting up vegetables for a stew he was making, and think of what to do with it later. _

_Just as he was daydreaming of a mortal Toothless, Hiccup missed the carrot he was chopping and landed on the side of his finger. He let out a bellowing curse as he cradled his gashed finger. _

_It didn't take long for his lover to respond to his pain. Hiccup could hear the hurried steps of his lover as he made his way downstairs and to the foyer. "Is everything okay, my love?" Toothless asked with exaggerated concern as he nearly flew into the kitchen. _

_Hiccup nodded as he instinctively put the injured finger into his mouth. Toothless gently took his lover's wrist, and tugged. The college student's mouth let go of the wounded appendage, and the dragon took careful inspection of the gash. _

_Hiccup smiled as he gazed upon the concerned expression of his lover. It felt wonderful to know that another being cared for him in such a way. He was about to tell Toothless that he was alright, and that the pain was nearly gone, when he noticed that his concerned eyes were no longer black, but a vibrant green. _

My pain is his weakness…

_Hiccup didn't waste the opportunity that presented itself. In the briefest of moments, Hiccup had plunged the knife he had been holding in his uninjured hand into Toothless' chest, and pulled it out. _

_Toothless' expression went from concern to confusion to disbelief in a matter of moments. He fell to the ground, shocked by the pain the stab wound was causing him. Normally, such an injury didn't faze him, but he was not aware that he had been weakened. The dragon looked upon his mate with a look of terrible fear. _

_Hiccup had to ignore the impulse to comfort him, and instead reach into the box on the counter. He took hold of the medallion inside. It felt like holding onto a piece of molten steel. The pain from the burn it was causing was maddening, but his resolve was strong. He kneeled beside Toothless before ripping his shirt, revealing the double bow and arrow mark on his shoulder. Just as Nick instructed, he placed the medallion over the mark, and watched as a golden ray of light entered it._

_The seconds felt like hours, but Hiccup was not worried. He would hold on to the medallion, feel the burning of his flesh, for centuries if he had to. There was no way he would allow his beloved to suffer. No, not while the goal was so close at hand. _

_Finally, the medallion cooled. Hiccup did not dare to let go of it, not until he knew that it had worked. Only when Toothless turned to him with eyes as bright as the rising sun and with a smile that only Hiccup could receive, did he finally let go. _

"_Hiccup?" Toothless laughed with nervous joy, "What did you do?" _

_Hiccup embraced his mate tightly. "I really wanted to have an outdoor wedding." _

* * *

The newlyweds were asked to approach the patio for a ceremonial last dance of the reception. The two were nervous to express their love in such a way. Their love had been somewhat of a private matter until very recently. Public displays of affection were few and far between, but the eyes that were on them slowly disappeared as the music began. They allowed themselves to melt into each other's arms and sway to the music.

"_Heartbeats fast _

_Colors and promises" _

Hiccup buried his head in Toothless' shoulder. "I can't believe this is really happening."

Toothless chuckled lightly. "I do, but I guess it's because I wanted this for a thousand years."

"_How to be brave  
How can I love, when I'm afraid to fall" _

"I have, too." Hiccup whispered lightly in Norse.

"_But watching you stand alone  
All of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow" _

Toothless gently pulled Hiccup away from him. "Hiccup?"

"_One step closer"_

Hiccup smiled brightly despite the tears that were forming in his eyes. "That night, when I made you mortal, I began to remember."

"_I have died everyday waiting for you  
Darling don't be afraid I have loved you_"

Hiccup buried himself in Toothless' embrace once more. "Everyday I remembered something different. The good times, the bad times. I even remember things I wasn't there for."

"_For a thousand years  
I'll love you for a thousand more"_

Toothless began to feel tears forming in his own eyes. Hiccup's memory, it was a miracle. It was more than he could ever ask. Good fortune blessed him so much by bring his mate back to him, it almost felt too much good will that Hiccup gained his memory as well. Yet, for all he had went through, he felt like he and his mate deserved some kind of compensation.

Hiccup wiped his lover's eyes. "Every time you thought I couldn't hear you, I could. I felt you, even when I was gone."

"_And all along I believed I would find you  
Time has brought your heart to me"_

Toothless held onto Hiccup tighter. Without a word, his embrace spoke everything that Toothless wanted to say. He was relieved, content and happy. Everything came to place beautifully, perfectly. All he ever asked for, everything he could have ever wanted, he had. Forever.

"I have loved you for a thousand years, my love." Hiccup whispered in Norse.

"_I'll love you for a thousand more"_

* * *

The newlyweds bid farewell to their guests and set off for their bedroom. They were tired from the day's activities, but regardless, they were eager to pack for their upcoming trip. They were going to a little island off the coast of the United Kingdom, and staying for a week before catching a cruise from Rome that would take them around the Mediterranean for the month.

Hiccup had been worried about his studies, but Toothless had assured him that everything would be taken care of. Sure enough, Hiccup found a new laptop with high-speed internet capabilities sitting on top of his empty suit case.

"Toothless!" Hiccup shouted in surprised joy, "This is awesome!"

"It'll come in handy for the distance learning program I signed you up for." Toothless explained through his cocky grin. He approached his beloved from behind, and embraced him as hard as he could without hurting him. "A wedding gift."

Hiccup laughed lightly as his beloved covered his neck and cheek in kisses. "Thank you!" The college student spun in Toothless' arms to face him. "But, I have something better for you."

"Oh?" Toothless raised an eyebrow.

Hiccup answered his unspoken question by standing on his toes and planting a passionate kiss on his lips. Even if Toothless was not already aware that such a kiss was an invitation for more, the scent of his mate's desire would have made his intentions clear. His human lover was right; this was better.

Hiccup pulled away slowly, even as Toothless' lips sought his. "No, no, it's not just that."

Toothless made a whimper that would put a toddler to shame. "Why not?"

Hiccup laughed heartily. "Come on, Toothless! It's not like I deprive you or anything."

The dragon growled as a playful grin made its way to his face. "But, my dear, you forget that dragons have huge appetites." He tried to lean in for another kiss, but Hiccup's finger stopped him. Toothless made do with what he had, and lightly kissed the finger several times.

Hiccup chuckled in delight. "Don't worry. You'll get yours, but I want it to be different."

"Oh?" Toothless asked through the trapped finger.

"Yes, come sit on the bed with me." Hiccup took a step backward and sat. Toothless wasted no time in sitting next to him.

"This sounds serious."

Hiccup smiled, but his anxiousness made its way to his eyes. He took a hold of his lover's strong hands before speaking. "You have to promise that you won't say no outright, that you'll at least think about it."

Toothless raised an eyebrow, but he nodded.

Hiccup took in a breath to calm his shaky nerves. "Well," he began slowly, "We never really spoke about joining our life forces and-"

Toothless sighed heavily. This was a topic that he did not want to speak about. Yes, it was a pleasant idea to know that he would not have to live without his beloved. They would both live for centuries given the right circumstances.

But, what if they weren't given the right circumstances? He wasn't a Dark-Hunter anymore, but that did not mean he did not have enemies. As Balthazar liked to say, "You leave one war only to enter another." He had enemies, and his enemies would know Hiccup as a weakness. He did not want to relive the events of the past.

Hiccup's hand delicately touching his face distracted him from his thoughts. The younger man had a pleading look on his face; he wanted Toothless to understand his desire. "I don't want to live without you, and I know you don't want to live without me. The worse that can happen is that we face eternity together."

"It's not death that I'm worried about, Hiccup." Toothless sighed with frustration. "Volundr isn't the only person out there who wants me dead, and they'll come after you first. I don't want you to be in harm's way."

"Aren't I already in harm's way by being your husband?" Hiccup asked sharply.

It was true. Toothless had already been selfish enough to allow Hiccup to remain in his life. He would be a weakness regardless of whether or not they were bound. If Hiccup were to lose his life, he wanted to follow him. The next time, they would go together in blissful eternity.

Toothless gave his final answer in the form of a passionate kiss. Hiccup pulled away, a stern look was on his face. "Is this what you want?"

The dragon gave his human mate a softer kiss. "Yes," he murmured against his lips, "You're right and I don't want to live without you."

The two mates fell on the bed. They kissed, stroked and caressed. Clothes disappeared, and their exploration became much more intimate. They tangled themselves in each other; so close to the other, but never close enough.

Hiccup was caught in such a whirlwind of pleasure that his lover's intrusion into his body was a total surprise, but a pleasant one. "How," Hiccup hissed in bliss, "you are able to do that and not hurt me will forever astound me."

The dragon leaned in close enough for his lips to ghost over his human's ear. "I have to keep some secrets," he whispered, "or you'll get bored of me."

"Pfft, as if."

The couple chuckled lightly.

The dragon began to rock slowly within his beloved, taking his time to enjoy the warmth that surrounded him. It wasn't just a primal pleasure, but one of the soul, as well. The joining of bodies, the becoming of one, put him in a place where he truly found peace.

Hiccup mewled, but did not whimper. It was a nice pace; slow and steady. This was not about quick satisfaction, but about expression. They would pledge themselves to one another, and that was what mattered.

Toothless' marked hand clasped the scarred hand of his lover. That dragon's movements became a bit faster, more erratic. His body was trying to find a quicker end that his heart did not want, but his instincts were hard to ignore. Judging by the moans of his lover, Hiccup's instincts were just as hard to stave off.

"Hiccup," Toothless let out breathlessly, "I need to take in your blood, and you need to take in mine. May I bite you?"

Hiccup nodded, responding without a word. Toothless allowed himself to thrust a few more times before his sharpened teeth bit into the soft neck of his human. Hiccup cried out in a combination of sweet pain and disturbing pleasure.

The dragon only took what was necessary before he used a canine to cut a slit across his wrist. He offered the wound to Hiccup, he took it into his mouth without question. Hiccup found his lover to taste as he was; strong yet sweet.

Both human and dragon could feel the ancient energies of their bonding filling their beings, and it brought them closer to nirvana. It was not long before Toothless roared and Hiccup shouted in pleasure. It was the strongest climax that either one had experienced.

For a few minutes, they allowed themselves the comfort of each other's embrace. They were both at peace until Toothless reminded Hiccup that their flight would leave in less than a few hours.

They would soon see where they started, and where they pledged to never end.


End file.
